“Senior Year” is a charming Netflix film that captures the true essence of Rebel Wilson’s character off-screen. She expands the scope of life in this picture. While her character takes center stage, you can’t take your focus away from her or the screen because you never know what dramatic scenario she’ll concoct next. With a gasp, she fulfills every unexpected expectation you have.
Director Alex Hardcastle collaborates with writers Andrew Knauer, Arthur Pielli, and Brandon Scott James, and also Rebel Wilson as the lead actor and producer, to portray a unique story about an adult’s fantastic journey after being in a coma for nearly 20 years. Stephanie Conway had a catastrophic fall and had been in a hospital bed for over two decades when she awoke to the voice of her 37-year-old boyfriend (from her days in high school) on TV. Let’s look at how Stephanie’s friends assist her in making the adjustment from being a 17-year-old to accepting who she is currently.
‘Senior Year’ Plot Summary: Does Stephanie Conway Admit to herself she is 37 years old?
Stephanie Conway’s mother succumbs to cancer after she and her family relocate to the United States from Australia. She sticks out at her school because of her distinct Australian accent. She wanted to make an impression as a 17-year-old and sought to figure out how to be the “popular” girl in 1999. When she loses her primary mother figure, it is her father figure who steps in to care for her in any way he believes is appropriate. Until one day, when everything for him and his daughter changes forever.
Stephanie Conway, a lost 17-year-old, is seen contemplating how she may fit in at her new American school. She immediately finds her way when she notices a boy with whom she has a somewhat corny crush that evolves into a completely cheesy and noisy sexual relationship that disrupts the classroom’s normal operation. Tiffany, a cheerleader for the school’s Bulldog Bougettes, is Stephanie’s main adversary. Stephanie creates a video recording of the routine on a VCR cassette to save in the school archive so that future generations of the school might remember it and perform it to keep the tradition alive.
Stephanie is a snobbish 17-year-old with poor grounding, and her best buddy Seth is now obsessing over her. Stephanie’s father is waiting for Seth to ask her out to the prom, and Seth always makes sure Stephanie is taken care of. Seth modestly hides his genuine motives, yet it is something he desires. Stephanie idolizes Deanne Russo, the High School Prom Queen, who, in her eyes, has a perfect life, husband, and home. An outsider’s misconception.
Blaine, Stephanie’s current boyfriend, was a high school hunk who had broken up with Tiffany before dating Stephanie. Stephanie’s best friend, Martha, is a covert lesbian who never informs Stephanie. Nonetheless, Stephanie constantly defends her best friend in every scenario, but she also takes advantage of Martha, who is well aware of Stephanie’s dangerous nature. Martha gives Stephanie the keys to her parent’s lake house so she can host her birthday party, begging her not to break anything.
It’s time for the cheerleading squad to perform their routine while the school is getting ready for a basketball game. Tiffany has a spat with Stephanie and tells her friends that they need to take action against her. Stephanie must be thrown into the air and caught by a fellow cheerleader while the performance is being performed. However, someone pushes the person to catch Stephanie, who is now falling in mid-air, but she crashes flat and falls into a deadly coma.
Stephanie awakens in the hospital as a 37-year-old woman. She only recognizes herself at the hospital floor’s reception mirror and faints, much to her surprise. As her father and Martha, who is now the principal at the local high school, joyfully meet her and explain what her life is like today, she embarks on a new trip. Stephanie is eager to return home and resume her life as a 17-year-old trapped in a 37-year-old body. Stephanie leads Martha down an unsettling path, but Martha is game and goes along with it. Stephanie is in for a pleasant surprise when she runs into Seth, who is now a librarian at the same school they both attended.
Senior Year’s Ending Explained: Does 37-year-old Stephanie finally kiss Seth?
Stephanie wants to revert to her 17-year-old self, with the goal of reviving Prom night at her high school. Tiffany has a daughter named Bri with her husband, Blaine Balbo. Martha is the principal of the elementary school where she and Stephanie both attended. When Stephanie awakens as a 37-year-old woman, Martha informs her of her rights and responsibilities. Times have changed, and words like “gay” must be used with care and respect, while being gender-neutral and positive. There will be no more cussing.
Stephanie gradually learns that phones are the new medium via which people connect, market their personalities, and are enormously addictive. Stephanie rapidly learns how to use the apps and spreads her influencer wings. Everyone around her tries to convince her that the phone and social media platforms are an artificial sense of existence. With her first couple of followers, who also play a key role in her new world, she starts a petition to bring back Prom King and Queen night. When she requests for this night to be repeated, she discovers that Martha is a lesbian and has a difficult time in school. This makes her more aware of her friend’s needs, and she begins to see people’s thinking has changed in a more progressive manner.
Stephanie makes numerous mistakes along the way, taking most of the people who truly love her for granted, as she goes through the ups and downs of a teenager’s lifestyle and returns to school. She betrays the faith that most of them have placed in her, and she must find a way to reclaim what she has lost. Stephanie irritates Seth and Martha the most when she throws a party at Martha’s lake house on the same night she wins Prom Queen (as a 37-year-old). When Tiffany reports Stephanie’s party to the cops, Martha discovers that Stephanie still has the keys to the lake house, which has been damaged by the kids because of their underage drinking.
Stephanie is devastated when she discovers how lonely and empty her life is without her two true best friends. When her father tells her that the people that approve of her now are not the same individuals who visited her in the hospital, she begins to see the true north. After meeting Deanne Russo, a cab driver, she finds that Deanne had a difficult life before discovering what she actually desired, which was to graduate, obtain her degree, and pursue a career she enjoys. Stephanie has a revelation and chooses to take a detour. Stephanie is ready to graduate after all this time. After consulting with her father, she has an idea. She records a live Instagram video and apologizes to everyone.
When the day of the graduation ceremony arrives, everyone greets Stephanie with a great smile after seeing her Live Session. Seth retrieves the tape from the vault, and they prepare for Stephanie’s graduation diploma presentation. They do Stephanie’s 1999 routine after the ceremony is finished and she graduates. Stephanie is pleased, and despite their difficulties, she and Tiffany have reconciled. For the routine, she pulls Tiffany up on stage, and everyone, including Seth and Martha, dances away their high school memories. Stephanie and Seth exchange a kiss on stage, professing their love to the world. Finally, the guy gets the girl—a happily ever after ending.
Final Words
“Senior Year” is a lighthearted story that addresses the concept that age is just a number and that what you achieve is up to you. When you desire something badly enough, the universe will align and pave the way for you to get it. It aids in the development of a certain level of motivation to look forward to dreaming and achieving every day, regardless of how many lemons are tossed at you.
Rebel Wilson prevails in an anti-stereotype story that is attentive to and inclusive of all communities with differing beliefs. She and her crew demonstrate that every individual has a rightful place on this planet, and that there is room and space for everyone. It’s a gentle reminder that the world is still ours to preserve, and that we only have each other with whom to share our lives. She brings back the Britney Spears moment from the 1990s and begs us to keep going. A completely fun watch.
“Senior Year” is a 2022 Drama Comedy film directed by Alex Hardcastle.
