What can i say.. I always continued to have a soft spot for teen movies. So every once in a while when a movie comes out that isn't just simply a teen sex comedy, i'm always curious to take a closer look at it. (but eventually ending up feeling.. well, old.. but that's a different story)
The Art Of Getting By's storyline is simple : ,George a lonely and fatalistic teen who's made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a day of (home)work is befriended by Sally, a popular but complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit.' (imdb)
The first thing that can be said about The Art Of Getting By is that it is very well-acted. Freddie Highmore and especially Emma Roberts are good in the leading roles and get excellent support from several of the people around them including Alicia Silverstone as one of their teachers.
I somehow ended up having mixed feelings about this though, mostly because the two lead characters are overly self-aware of everything that's happening around them and about life in general. Especially the character of George, who we are supposed to believe is disinterested in everything around him, but never passes on the opportunity to tell people about his disinterest. The problem is that it seems to have been written by an adult who adds his knowledge he (or she) gained throughout his (or her) life to the fictional teen characters of George and Sally. That's probably the reason why they are constantly overly self-aware to the point where it gets annoying.
The first half of the movie didn't really do much for me, but somewhere midway-through there's a scene where George and Sally are on a date on Valentine's Day when Sally asks George if he wants to have sex with her, but when George doesn't respond in the way she expected, quickly dismisses it as a joke, leaving George irritated and even angry. That was really the first scene up until that point where we actually feel some emotional depth ,not only about George but about Sally as well. Things get more complicated and far more interesting after that.
The Art Of Getting By is good, likable and even charming, but not without its flaws.
[ 20. April 2012, 07:07: Message edited by: Johnny Roarke is reckless ]
Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
Just watched the trailer and it was pretty cool. I liked Emma in Wild Child which was fluff but fun flick.
Posted by Johnny Roarke is reckless (Member # 9826) on :
I didn't even realise Emma was the daughter of Eric Roberts, and thus Julia's niece. She definitely has the same talent as her relatives, that's for sure !
Prior to The Art Of Getting By she also starred in a movie called It's Kind Of A Funny Story. I haven't seen that one yet, but i think i will be picking it up on dvd or blu-ray as well. Judging by the trailer it has the same target-audience as The Art Of Getting By. Both seem to be more serious teen comedy / drama's instead of being teen sex comedy's.
It's Kind Of A Funny Story also feels somewhat like a modern One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. Here's the trailer for that one : www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_pq7HKc9z8
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
