It makes sense, I guess. There really is an opening for the sort of teen comedy that John Hughes used to make – the kind where the loneliness and bewilderment of adolescence are acknowledged, and the teenagers involved aren’t leered at or treated like idiots.

It’s not ’16 Candles’ or anything, but ‘Perks’ is a serviceable facsimile. The performances are generally winning, and the melodrama doesn’t wear out its welcome until late in the third act. The script is a bit ham-fisted, but it’s a teen dramedy and that’s to be expected. When one of the characters acknowledges this fact by lamenting that his life had “officially become an afterschool special”, I found it sort of charming.

Better than I expected. If you’re feeling nostalgic for your days as a teen outcast, grab it from Redbox.

Also, a little bonus Joan Cusack, who I will never stop loving.