Cory Wexler Grant’s under the radar coming-of-age teen comedy has all the moxie and attitude to attract the attention of either the youth of today, or a nostalgic audience looking for a glimpse back into their high school days. At its core, it is about best friends trying to accomplish something before the inevitable graduation, and likely separation, fractures their friendship. Their school has their own radio station, and students are chosen and given the opportunity to have their own blocks of programming. These two gay best friends end up becoming the talk of the school, as their edgy radio show catches fire, and they deal with the pressures of being notorious.

I didn’t grow up with a radio station in my high school, and I was in high school in the late 90’s, not the early 90’s, yet this film didn’t really feel like it was a time capsule back to any part of my life. I suppose the simple fact that they are using the radio, and not a podcast, really changes the decade in and of itself, but there’s a very 2026 mentality and vibe that runs through the film. It feels like these kids are living today, not in 2026, just weirdly restrained by technology of yesteryear. My school had a weekly student news, where we produced segments, and everything was pre-taped. A radio show might have been fun, but aside from that, I didn’t really catch much 90’s culture pushing through. Who do they like, which books or magazines were they reading, music, TV, film, video games, etc.? It feels like nostalgia bound without ever reaching its goal.

And the lack of a soundtrack, when this film is clearly chasing John Hughes vibes, is unfortunate. I understand indie films have less money to work with, but there is so much music out there in the world, there wasn’t anything that worked here? Think about how iconic it was for John Cusack to hold up that boombox in say Anything, or Judd Nelson thrusting his fist in the air as the Breakfast club asked us not to forget about them. Music makes teen films pop. Even late 90’s films understood this, which is why your brain ties bittersweet Symphony with Cruel Intentions, or Kiss Me which featured in both She’s All That and Dawson’s Creek. This is a film about radio, and while it may be talk radio at the center, it is so odd this film doesn’t have a needle drop soundtrack to match either its tone, or nostalgia bait vibes.

Aside from the lack of soundtrack, and the feeling of 2026 trapped in the early 90’s, the movie is fun, and has an engaging cast of mostly fresh faces. I really enjoyed the sequences in the booth, as our leads have effortless chemistry, and the writing was strongest in those moments. The dialogue just flowed perfectly, and sold us on the idea these two not just belonged in radio, but that they complimented each other enough to make it happen together.

Like most teen films, it does a nice job of selling you on the high school hierarchy, notably propping up the lunch lady as a delightful supporting character. The movie is far more interested in these two guys being best friends than it is exploring the romantic angle between them, which is refreshing for a queer 90’s throwback. They struggle a bit with acceptance, which is common for the period, and the teen melodrama is heightened in moments where one of them is forced to make a choice, and the other feels like it was the wrong one. From an adult standpoint, it is an irrational reaction, as clearly it is about being able to see the forest trough the trees, but the other half is too caught up in the moment to think past it.

The use of the chipmunk voice was a bit much at the end, but it just pushed the idea that they want this to be viewed more as a comedy, and not a melodrama. The lack of audio description did dampen my enjoyment a bit, as maybe the style of the 90’s was missing, and the ensemble is harder to track, but so much of what works about the film lies in the banter between the leads, that I still found myself liking it enough. Pride month isn’t far off, and if you’re looking for something fresh, you could do worse.

Screams From The Tower sounds like teen spirit, with an engaging fresh ensemble that pays homage to classic 80’s and 90’s teen comedies. However, the lack of needle drops, which teen films thrived on, left me dazed and confused.

Fresh: 7.1/10