Film Review – Never Change!

June 19th, 2026 | POSTED BY Allen Almachar

I’m willing to bet that for most of us, the notion of reliving high school is a nightmare. Sure, we wouldn’t have to deal with the responsibilities of being an adult, but we would be burdened with the stress of that awkward teenage phase. Being young, immature, emotional, feeling like an outcast, getting bullied, rapidly changing bodies, dealing with homework, deciding what college to attend and what careers to pursue – who wants to go through all that again? I have fond memories of high school, but that’s exactly where that time of my life belongs: In my memories. Ask a bunch of people what they liked most about high school and a good amount will likely say “When it ended.”

It’s that attitude that permeates throughout the comedy, Never Change! (2026). Directed by Marty Schousboe (screenplay by John Reynolds), the narrative sets up an absurd premise that involves a bunch of people in their mid 30s redoing their senior year of high school. For many, this is their worst fears realized. For others, it’s a second chance to get things right and correct their past mistakes. Right off the bat, the writing and direction take an approach that doesn’t resemble reality in any shape or form. This is a zany, goofball romp where nearly all the characters operate outside of basic human behavior. While a lot of it falls flat (badly, in fact), I found myself engaged from start to finish. No, this isn’t a good film by the basic definitions of what makes a “good film,” yet there is a charm to it that is hard to ignore.

So how does a group of 35-year-olds go back to their old stomping grounds? We learn that a tornado decimated their town and caused their school to close for two weeks, resulting in them unable to graduate and earn their diplomas in 2008. After some political and administrative fenagling, the students are now forced to return years later to finish the last two weeks and finally get that piece of paper. This is ridiculous (of course), as some have already created a career for themselves. For others, they view this as an opportunity to close a chapter of their lives and move on. We meet our primary players. Slacker Sunny Football (Reynolds) rekindles an old romance with news anchor Katie Cartwright (Sofia Black-D’Elia). Tedi Mayo (Carmen Christopher) never took school seriously and ended up owning a rundown bar. He enlists the help of Amelia (Jo Firestone) – a good student but whom no one remembers – to help him pass his exams. In the meantime, Amelia grows attached to Curtis (Gary Richardson) who was recently fired from his executive job and has returned partly to re-indulge his passions in theater. 

The writing and direction do an admirable job of juggling a large cast of misfits. In terms of tone, this plays like a slice-of-life/hang out film where we drop into these characters’ lives mid-stream, ala Dazed and Confused (1993) or last year’s Eephus (2024). Never Change! does not belong in the same category as those two quality-wise, but the tenor is familiar. Much of the runtime has characters dealing with old, unresolved issues but with the added weight of their lives not turning out the way they had thought. Some storylines stick out more than others. The relationship between Sunny and Katie operate as the main arc, with Katie’s recent engagement to another man being a major obstacle to deal with. Amelia’s desire to leave her mark with the student body and not be forgotten (again) is both understandable and sad. Tedi Mayo turns out to be one of the more memorable characters. Yes, he is a bit of a buffoon, but he understands that getting his high school diploma could help him better provide for his family. 

Unfortunately, the rest of the characters act more like cartoon characters, with little resemblance to real life people. This isn’t just relegated to the students, but school staff as well. Topher Grace shows up in a ludicrous wig as Mr. Whiley, the school’s theater director whose more obsessed with shutting down the yearly play than to have it take place. Principal Nadler (Ana Gasteyer) becomes increasingly unhinged as her experiment with grown up students casts a dark shadow over the school. The worst teacher is Ms. Jankey (Maria Thayer) whom – for whatever reason – cares less about teaching her students than she does sleeping with them. Up and down, all the characters feel like exaggerations. Credit should go to the actors for jumping headfirst into the material. It’s not easy to play such over-the-top roles, and each do so with commitment. A lot of it doesn’t work, but I appreciated the effort.

Cinematically, Never Change! utilizes techniques that break from the natural world. When Sunny and Katie reunite at Tedi’s bar, the cinematography (Matt Clegg) switches to extreme slow motion with the lighting basking the visuals in a hazy yellow glow – a clear representation of their romantic longing. Other times, the camerawork and editing (Whit Conway) amplify the comedy. The funniest scene has three classmates sitting at a diner having hot coffee. Each of them take sips from their mugs and recoil from the burning heat. In pure slapstick fashion, they continue drinking as though the result would be different, with the editing cutting between them with increasing speed. The scene is simple and stupid, yet it’s executed with such bravado that I couldn’t help but chuckle at something so confidently irrational.

And that’s where Never Change! stands as a whole. It throws a lot of gags, improv, and punchlines at the wall, and only some of it sticks. Yet, it has such a sincere personality that I got invested in the story despite the logical side of my brain telling me otherwise. It doesn’t have much insight into nostalgia, the dynamics of high school or the regrets of adulthood. It’s not smart enough to be satire but not clever enough to be a straightforward comedy. But there was something about it that hooked me. There’s something in the way it so boldly embraces its own silliness. Someone can watch this and call it one of the worst movies of the year, while another will consider it a personal favorite. This is the kind of flick the term “Guilty Pleasure” was created for.

Ana Gasteyer, Carmen Christopher, Dazed and Confused, Eephus, Gary Richardson, Jo Firestone, John Reynolds, Maria Thayer, Marty Schousboe, Matt Clegg, Never Change!, Sofia Black-D'Elia, Topher Grace, Whit Conway