Film

Never Goin' Back

Name: Never Goin' Back
Genre: Comedy
Released: 2018
Cast: Maia Mitchell, Camila Morrone, Kyle Mooney, Joel Allen, Kendal Smith

Comedy
Light-hearted

A scrappy comedy about two broke best friends chasing down money they lost in a drug deal so they can afford their beach trip. It's chaotic, profane, and genuinely funny—a low-budget indie that feels like hanging out with people you shouldn't but absolutely would. For fans of messy, character-driven comedy without a moral spine.

TMDb rating

3.1

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy scrappy, dope-fueled comedies where two sharp-tongued best friends talk their way through bad decisions with a loose, improvised looseness that feels like hanging out with them.

Skip it if you want a tightly plotted caper or a comedy that keeps stakes high; this one drifts, lingers on aimless hangouts, and runs on its characters' laziness more than on momentum.

What it asks of you: It runs about an hour and a half and stays easygoing, asking you to settle into its lazy rhythm and accept scenes that wander before they land a joke.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Booksmart2019

Two brilliant high schoolers cram a night of rule-breaking into one wild evening. Smart, anarchic, and genuinely affectionate about its characters' desperation to not be boring. The chemistry between leads carries you through increasingly absurd situations.

But The frantic energy and constant yelling might exhaust you rather than exhilarate you. Some jokes land softer than others.

Broad City2014

Two women navigate New York with absolute disregard for consequences or shame. It shares Never Goin' Back's sweaty, stoned-logic approach to comedy—making terrible decisions feel like the most natural thing in the world.

But Five seasons is a big commitment, and the show's best stuff lands in seasons two and three. Some episodes coast on premise rather than execution.

Trainwreck2015

Amy Schumer plays a chaotic commitment-phobe stumbling through life and relationships with brutal honesty. It's got that same loose, riffing-with-friends energy and genuine affection for flawed people doing dumb things.

But Schumer's comedy style has aged into divisiveness. The romantic subplot creeps up and softens what could've been sharper.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Never Goin' Back

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Climax2018

Both trap appealing characters in escalating chaos with drug use as the inciting incident; both commit fully to the illogic and desperation without cutting away.

A dance troupe's rehearsal dissolves into nightmarish chaos when their sangria gets spiked. It's filmed like a fever dream—beautiful and suffocating. Shares Never Goin' Back's commitment to watching people disintegrate while stripped of agency, but trades comedy for genuine dread.

But It's visually stunning but utterly bleak and body-horror-adjacent. Watching people suffer through intoxication stops being funny here. European arthouse, not accessible indie.

Eighth Grade2018

Bo Burnham's mortifying comedy about the lowest point of adolescence. It nails the same thing Never Goin' Back gets: the strange warmth of watching people flail and fail, especially in front of their friends.

But It's painful to watch in earnest. This is comedy that wrings laughs from real discomfort, not release. Quite heavy for a sunny afternoon.

The Florida Project2017

Two kids and their resourceful mother scrape by on the edges of Disney World's empire, making magic from nothing. The scrappiness and found-family warmth echo Never Goin' Back's spirit, even though the tone is far gentler.

But It's quiet and observational where you might want plot momentum. Beautifully made but slow, and the poverty isn't played for laughs.

Dope2015

Three nerdy kids try to survive their neighborhood by navigating drug dealers, cops, and each other. It's got that same debris-filled energy—comedy that emerges from characters trying to out-logic their way through chaos.

But Tonal whiplash between comedy and crime drama sometimes feels uneven. The script tries to say too much about its characters' world.

The Greasy Strangler2016

A deranged, deliberately ugly comedy about a father and son obsessed with 1980s nightclubs. It's grotesque and wrong and committed to being neither likable nor polished—pure artistic chaos disguised as a movie.

But It's truly vile in ways that might feel pointless rather than liberating. Not funny so much as assaultive. Absolutely not for everyone.

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping2016

Andy Samberg as a delusional pop star navigating absurd situations with absolute sincerity. It's got Never Goin' Back's willingness to be dumb and committed at once, letting characters own their worst instincts.

But It's broad and scattered, and the premise runs thin. Relies heavily on celebrity cameos rather than narrative momentum.

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping poster

Tropic Thunder2008

Actors trapped in actual jungle chaos, making increasingly terrible decisions while covered in filth. Committed to the bit in ways that mirror Never Goin' Back—characters so invested in their own logic that disaster becomes inevitable.

But The blackface bit is what it is. Some gags feel dated. It's broader and less grounded than the naturalistic chaos you might be craving.

Bully2011

Both films trust the audience to sit with young people in crisis without explaining or judging them; both have that documentary-realist quality where the comedy or horror emerges from unflinching observation of how people actually behave.

Larry Clark documents the friendship between teenagers in rural Florida who plan to murder one of their circle. It's presented with anthropological deadpan—no moral narration, just kids being exactly who they are on camera.

But It's genuinely disturbing and occasionally exploitative. Watches like found footage of people doing real harm. No humor, no distance, no catharsis. Deeply uncomfortable.

C.R.A.Z.Y.2005

Both center on the survival instinct of people who've chosen each other as family; both use humor and mess to explore belonging and acceptance without sentimentalizing it.

A semi-autobiographical French-Canadian film about a gay teenager navigating family, sexuality, and chaos across decades. It's warm, funny, and genuinely moving—capturing that particular mixture of love and damage that defines close relationships.

But It's a subtitled period piece that meanders through decades. The tone swings from comedy to heartbreak to surrealism. Not a plot-driven film; asks patience for character immersion.