What Superbad Understands About Teenagers That Nobody Else Does

Superbad is a dumb comedy about two boys trying to buy vodka. It's also one of the only movies that gets teenagers right. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg started writing it around 13, and you can tell. The big talk, the vest, the fake ID, the drunk "I love you" in a sleeping bag… it's all a kid pretending to be grown up, and the movie knows it. So what did they understand that nobody else does?