Teenage Wasteland: AMERICAN TEEN - Reviewed!

Good ol' Mondays. Gotta love 'em. I'm here back at work after an interesting weekend, wishing that I had just one more day to chill out and relax before getting back to business. One thing I did this weekend that was a lot of fun: I played tennis for the first time in probably a few years. I'm a big tennis fan, and would play more often if I could, but just never found others out here who were nearby and who really wanted to play. But, thanks to the fact that my friend Fowzia is currently living in the swanky Oakwood apartments of Hollywood, which are fully loaded with tennis courts, among other things, I was able to join up with Fowzia and another former Page, Melissa K, for a few semi-intense rounds of tennis. It took a little while for the basics to come back to me, and I was still pretty rusty even then. But it felt good to be out on the court swinging a racket, although I think all three of us are slightly sore in the aftermath. But, it's a good kind of sore, I think. And for the curious - I played decently, but yeah, there were certainly times when both ladies kicked my @$$.

- On another note, I hope everyone checked out my last two entries, which were both uber-long MEGA-POSTS. The first detailed all the highs and lows of last weekend's San Diego Comic-Con adventures, and the second featured my long-awaited review of The X-Files: I Want to Believe. Each is practically required reading ... take my word for it.

- And while I'm getting back into the realm of geek-talk for a sec, let me just be a complete nerd for one more minute and say that I purchased Soul Calibur IV for the PS3 this weekend, and man, does it rock so far. I've loved the Soul Calibur series since it debuted as Soul Edge / Soul Blade on the PS1, and always get a kick from playing as one of the series' many over-the-top fighters. The icing on the cake is that, in this latest iteration, you can play as freaking Darth Vader as a bonus character, as well as his secret apprentice from the upcoming Force Unleashed game. To whup all kinds of ass as Darth Vader is truly a blast, and the game as a whole, while not too big a departure from previous entries, is still one heck of a fighter for the PS3. I can't wait to have some friends over for a little Soul Calibur session.

- Anyways, saw a few movies this weekend, one of them being DARK KNIGHT for the second time. I actually have a few DK-related blogs I still want to write, including my ideas for the inevitable Part 3. Stay tuned for those later on in the week ... and, oh, in the meantime, want to say a "get-well soon!" to MORGAN FREEMAN. It goes without saying that Freeman is one of the greatest actors out there, and a presence who elevates any movie he's in. Shocking to hear that he was in a pretty serious car wreck today - I join all of his fans in hoping that it's not too serious and that he's back on his feet and back making movies ASAP.



- But the second film I took in this weekend, American Teen, is the one I'm going to focus on here - it's a really cool documentary that deserves a big audience, so here's my review:

AMERICAN TEEN Review:

- When done right, I love stories about teens and about life in high school. I'm not talking the glossy reality shows that MTV has in abundance - I'm talking stories that have a little grit, a little darkness, a little hint of ... reality. I love movies and TV shows that, through humor and drama and wry observation can cut to the core of the high school experience - works that can do that have the potential to be especially powerful, as they dramatize a point in life where emotions and experiences are naturally heightened. The Breakfast Club, Freaks & Geeks, My So-Called Life, Dazed and Confuzed, Superbad - to me, these are some of the best films and TV shows because they each really capture something real and authentic about the teenage experience. Now comes AMERICAN TEEN - a documentary (as opposed to "reality"), that takes the basic high school class types from movies like The Breakfast Club - freak, geek, jock, and queen bee - and follows four actual high schoolers who at first glance, seem to fit neatly into these stereotypes. But what's so brilliantly done here is that, very quickly, the layers on these characters are peeled back. As we examine these small-town Indiana teens, we start to realize that our principle subjects are anything but two-dimensional, and that they are, in fact, complex, multi-faceted, and not-so-easily categorized.

Director Nanette Burstein does a really artful job of introducing the main teens and of presenting their stories in a heartfelt and often hilarious way. There's Colin - the popular basketball star who faces pressure to play well in order to get an athletic scholarship. There's Megan - the moody queen bee with a posse of hanger-ons and a tendency to hold a grudge against anyone who dares cross her. There's Jake - an acne-riddled geek who, despite his lack of self-confidence, often puts himself out there in his quest to find a girlfriend.

However, I have to say the real star of the movie is Hannah. Especially watching the film here in LA, I think a lot of us in the audience saw at least a little of ourselves in her. Hannah is the artsy girl who doesn't fit into her small midwestern town or her clique-y high school. She likes art and film and wants to go to college in California, but is met with resistance by her hesistant parents. Her situation is made all the more difficult in that her dad is only occasionally in her life after having moved out of state, and her mom suffers from a mental disorder, meaning Hannah lives alone with her elderly grandmother. Given all that, you can't help but root for her - she's one of those girls who's had to suffer through high school, but you just know that once she gets out of there, big things will be in store.

Jake is often just pretty hilarious. He's kind of a strange one because despite his low self-esteem, the truth is he ends up dating about three different girls during the movie, whereas the jock, Colin, is never really seen with any ladies. But there's a great scene where Jake goes on a trip to Mexico with his older brother, and has all kinds of crazy adventures that would make the cool kids in school very jealous. It's this eye-opening moment both for Jake and for us, because suddenly the lens is pulled back and we all see that, yes, there is life outside of high school. And Jake just got a taste of it.

Colin and Megan are both kind of interesting in their own right. What's fascinating is that both are initially presented as the typical "popular" types, and yet it's a very un-glamorized version of popular. Colin has zits, an oversized chin, and a prematurely receding hairline. He can't seem to find a girl, and his typically overbearing dad also happens to be an embarringly flamboyant part-time Elvis impersonator. Megan's a bit plump, has a crush on her guy friend who clearly doesn't like her back, and has some pretty horrific personal tragedies in her recent history that have obviously left her traumatized to some extent. It's just a bit jarring to see how different these so-called popular kids are as compared to the fantasy Hollywood versions.

There's also a really interesting cast of supporting players, which the film doesn't do the deep dive on but who prove really interesting in their own right. There's the ditzy blonde who serves as Megan's head lackey / chief rival. The gay best friend to Megan who is always there to comfort her when she's down. The new girl in school who Jake quickly tries to befriend and ask out on a date, before she realizes just how uncool he is. And she actually goes out with him, too, and they seem to have an okay thing going - that is, until she is caught making out with one of Jake's friends from the school marching band.

And yeah, there are moments like the aforementioned "gotcha" that do feel slightly staged and/or contrived. There's certain moments that seem a bit too convenient (like Jake's last-minute date for the prom, a hastily-introduced friend from San Diego), and others that make you wonder how exactly the filmmakers captured on camera (why would Megan vandalize another girl's house with full knowledge that the cameras were watching her every move?).

But ultimately, there is a huge difference between American Teen and the glut of semi-scripted and very-much-staged teen TV fare that's out there right now. Sure, there are some scenes that feel contrived, but for the most part the narrative is so engrossing, so authentic-seeming, that the movie becomes much, much more than just another high school melodrama. Take for instance the series of scenes in which Hannah begins dating Mitch - a clean-cut, Abercrombie-wearing basketball star. The two of them seem to have a real connection, but just as you begin to feel happy for both of them, the sinking reality of the high school caste system begins to surface, as Mitch becomes more and more concious that his jock friends are teasing him about Hannah. When he unceremoniously dumps her, giving in to the peer pressure, it's unexpectedly heartbreaking and real.

It's moments like that that really make American Teen, and its the strength of the main chast of real-life characters that carry the narrative. This is a really great documentary, and definitely worth seeing. It made me laugh a lot, and though there are sad moments, it left me feeling strangely optimistic. Because it's a movie that brings you back to that magical moment of high school graduation, when the old shackles are left behind and anything seems possible.

My Grade: A-

- Okay, that's all I've got for now. Stay tuned for a review of STEP BROTHERS!