“Irreverent and charming comedy that explores the world from the perspective of two delightfully eccentric protagonists.”

Growing up is never easy, and it can be a challenge to navigate the teenage years, since this is the point in our lives where we are expected to begin planning the future, while not being equipped with the knowledge or experience to make any informed decisions, basing them instead on a combination of social conventions and pure instinct. A recent film that explores these treacherous years is Extra Geography, a delightfully entertaining comedy in which Molly Manners transitions from being a reliable television director to making her film debut with this adaptation of Rose Tremain’s charming short story. The film follows Minna and Flic, who are in their penultimate year at an elite girls’ boarding school somewhere in the North of England. Entirely unsure of what the future holds, the pair decide to force themselves to get some experience, taking advantage of the fact that every student must do a “summer project” to enrich them as they prepare for their final year. They decide on a slightly more unorthodox approach: they will fall in love. Their target is Miss Delavigne, their reserved but kind-hearted geography teacher who has always been a strong mentor for her students. However, the duo discover that it is not as easy as they thought to fall in love by force, and in the process learn more about themselves and their own friendship, especially because they are both cast in the annual theatrical production, which brings with it a unique set of challenges. A simple film, but one with a strong foundation on which Manners develops this irreverent and charming comedy that explores the world from the perspective of two delightfully eccentric protagonists.

At a glance, Extra Geography seems to be pulling from the same general playbook of coming-of-age comedies centring around rebellious teenage protagonists, clearly inspired by the likes of Lady Bird and Booksmart in how it examines the trials and tribulations of characters navigating that awkward liminal space between adolescence and adulthood. They are expected to be forging a path towards the future, but lack the emotional and psychological skills to achieve any real growth, especially since they’re both more focused on trivial matters. One key difference is that this particular story foregrounds the friendship between the two girls, showing how they act as each other’s most trusted companion, while also handling the inevitability that they will eventually drift apart, even if the very idea may be unfathomable to either of them. Told through a series of episodic moments that weave together to create this poignant depiction of two young women working through a variety of challenges while making their way towards their final school year, Extra Geography is as much about friendship as it is the absurdity of the private school system, which is carefully but brilliantly lampooned throughout this film. It’s here that Minna and Flic find themselves learning some of life’s difficult but inevitable lessons – the feeling of rejection, the realisation that our ambitions don’t always match with our skills, and (perhaps most importantly) the fickle nature of friendships, some of which are not destined to last forever, but rather exist only for a short but memorable time.

As a character study, Extra Geography provides a tremendous showcase for the two young women enlisted to play the leads, a pair of delightfully eccentric protagonists who are different enough to be distinct but have enough in common to make their friendship feel authentic. Minna, portrayed by Galaxie Clear, and Flic, played by Marni Duggan, represent generations of young people who are simply trying to find their place in the world, but struggle to reconcile their dreams and desires with what is practical in their reality, learning that being different can be a blessing or a curse, depending on how they approach it. On their own, both actors are tremendous. Clear is the more confident of the two, the sociable “brains” behind their various plans, and the person who seems poised to be accepted into the popular cliques based on her willingness to be more open. Conversely, Duggan has the more sympathetic character with Flic, in whom I suspect most viewers will see themselves: insecure, shy and painfully awkward, she has chosen to just exist in the margins, rather than having the bold confidence to announce herself, which is where the eventual conflict between the two friends emerges. The chemistry between the leads is incredible – their ability to land the larger dramatic moments, as well as finding truth in the quieter, more subtle details, anchors this film, since it depends on the audience truly believing that these two could actually be friends. Both actresses show extraordinary promise and seem poised to be breakout stars, their ability to be both natural and funny (quite rare for relative newcomers) giving Extra Geography an additional layer of nuance that it handles exceptionally well.

Extra Geography walks a very narrow tonal tightrope, aiming to be both an outrageously funny satire of the often strict, draconian structure of the private school system and a well-crafted, tender portrait of a friendship undergoing unexpected changes. The marvel is, despite being the film debut for both the director and the screenwriter Miriam Battye (who had the task of adapting Tremain’s compelling story), this is a remarkably self-assured work, in terms of aesthetic and tonal qualities. The film moves between being uproariously funny and deeply tender, depending on what is being communicated on screen, which gives the story a unique and flexible tone, since the director is openly playing with form as a means to underline the absurdity of the school system while also exploring one of the countless friendships that are born in these institutions, and unfortunately cease in them from time to time. There is a lot of humour drawn directly from the experience of attending these schools, so viewers unfamiliar with how these systems function may miss some of the more subtle satirical jabs, but the film is nonetheless smart enough not to make it hostile to outsiders. Emotionally, it can veer towards being quite twee at times, with many of the idiosyncrasies commonly found in the coming-of-age comedy genre. Nevertheless, it overcomes this tendency by presenting a clear vision of what it wants to say, and by not going for the low-hanging fruit in its emotional content. Some deeply sad moments punctuate the film, especially in its final moments, as well as a few sequences in which it deliberately skirts the edges of decency in order to push a few boundaries, while never becoming entirely immoral, and simply aiming to reflect the complex inner worlds of these fascinating protagonists.

Ultimately, the message delivered by Extra Geography is that sometimes there are no happy endings or neat resolutions, and that we occasionally must watch our closest friends walk away when we realise that our paths have deviated too widely to maintain the friendship. It is part of life, and something that we all have had to endure – but rather than using it as fodder for a melodramatic, overly emotional jumble, Manners proves herself to be a skillful storyteller by developing a wickedly funny and deeply moving narrative that explores those special friendships we forge during our formative years and hope will last a lifetime, but that sometimes just fade away. A quirky deconstruction of the joyful recklessness of youth, which subverts many common tropes we usually find in coming-of-age films, while also introducing some deeper and more complex ideas, the film offers fascinating insights into a friendship weathering various storms, some trivial and others more intense. It follows the ebb and flow of a relationship, defined by two extraordinary central performances that are likely to lead to major breakthroughs for both of the gifted young stars. The film can sometimes feel cynical in its refusal to give us clear answers, but it does highlight the fact that life is filled with challenges, which only make one stronger in the process. Mercifully, much of the more sombre commentary is delivered through subtle cues rather than directly stated, allowing the story to maintain its very eccentric, upbeat atmosphere for the most part. Extra Geography is a film less about growing up and more about the importance of holding onto youth as long as it is within our grasp, cherishing these seemingly small moments that will not last forever, and go on to become core memories in the future. Navigating themes as intimidating as memory and identity while also being blisteringly funny, Extra Geography is a wonderful blend of comedy and melancholy, a tribute to youth and all the glorious mistakes we make when seeking our place in a strange and confusing world, one that is always easier to navigate with a friend by your side.