`SLC PUNK' GETS TO HEART OF BEING YOUNG, REBELLIOUS.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Daily News Film Critic

Calling ``SLC Punk'' the best youth movie to hit theaters this year isn't much of a stretch. In a crowded category of empty-headed, cliched fare, this fresh film is the one entrant that bothered to get the details right. Writer-director James Merendino not only understands what it means to be punk, but also recognizes the meaning behind the Mohawk. And that's a pretty neat trick.

The SLC in the film's title stands for Salt Lake City, the unlikely home of a band of hard-core punkers searching for their own identities as they move beyond high school and college. It would seem to be a tall order to be an anarchist in Utah, particularly during the film's 1985, Reagan-era setting.

But as the movie's main character, Stevo (Matthew Lillard), puts it: ``In a religiously oppressive city where half the people don't belong to the main religion, rebellion comes like fire.''

Stevo lives with Bob (Michael Goorjian), an angry young man who sports a Mohawk, smashes mirrors and abhors needles with a passion. One of the movie's best visual jokes comes early after Bob punches out a mirror, treats his wound by wrapping it in an old, dirty T-shirt (no needles!) and goes about his business. The resulting infection (and it's a beauty) means Bob needs a shot, which means the doctor on call is one unlucky human being.

Merendino, who was born and raised in Salt Lake City and logged his share of hours listening to the Ramones, spends the first half of the movie affectionately establishing his characters with a rather meandering narrative that jumps around in time and place.

Most of the time, Bob and Stevo and their friends alternate between partying and fighting, with episodes like a beer pilgrimage to Wyoming thrown in for some variety. (The weak beer sold in Utah has but half of the standard alcohol content and is therefore unacceptable.)

What makes ``SLC Punk'' more than a humorous diversion is the way the film's knowing script exposes the fragile spirits beneath the characters' shocking clothes and anti-social posing. Both Bob and Stevo come from broken homes, a situation both characters accept without self-pity. But their upbringing has certainly handicapped them in a way they are now only beginning to understand.

It ultimately dawns on them that a life without money, without jobs and without hope can seem attractive to an intelligent person for just so long. And despite some anti-social behavior, both Bob and Stevo are smart kids who understand the necessity of change.

Lillard has played this type of hyperkinetic character before in movies like ``Scream'' and ``Senseless.'' Here, given the opportunity to stretch, he proves up to the challenge, revealing a young man daring enough to confront his own value system and turn it into something that can work for the rest of his life.

The performance and the premise - that youthful rebellion can push a society forward - make ``SLC Punk'' an authentic, enjoyable experience worth savoring in a year full of artificial adolescents.

THE FACTS

The film: ``SLC Punk'' (R; language, some violence and sexual situations).

The stars: Matthew Lillard and Michael Goorjian.

Behind the scenes: Written and directed by James Merendino. Released by Sony Pictures Classics.

Running time: One hour, 37 minutes.

Playing: Northridge Fashion Center Stadium 10; Laemmle's Playhouse 7 Cinemas; Laemmle's Sunset 5 in West Hollywood; Laemmle's Monica in Santa Monica.

Our rating: Three stars.

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Photo

Photo: Stevo (Matthew Lillard) runs around looking for fights and parties in ``SLC Punk.''