Fine young actors make teen angst real
The popularity of teen angst on TV and in films offers a steady stream of brooding young actors who walk lonely streets in long black coats, trying to emote dark feelings. Often they are so wooden that the scenes come across as trite.
The popularity of teen angst on TV and in films offers a steady stream of brooding young actors who walk lonely streets in long black coats, trying to emote dark feelings. Often they are so wooden that the scenes come across as trite.
That's not the case with The Art of Getting By. The film is loaded with teen-angst moments that have a more realistic feel because of superb performances by Freddie Highmore and Emma Roberts. Their acting resonates with such depth that the angst isn't a dark costume slipped over the actors but a deep feeling consumed and then sweated out through every pore.
Highmore plays George Zinavoy, a high school senior who sees homework as a trivial annoyance next to the larger concerns of living. He's so consumed with the topics of life and death that he's created a social bubble around himself. Sally Howe (Roberts) provides the first reason for George to look beyond his emotional barricades.
Teen-angst films often are comical, as with Charlie Bartlett, or melodramatic, as with Twilight. The Art of Getting By is more heartfelt. Newcomer director/writer Gavin Wiesen shows great maturity by having his actors play the angst in a realistic tone. That's what makes the deep emotional moments so strong.
They all are so confident of the strength of the performances, they don't hesitate to enter areas usually considered taboo for the genre. When Highmore cries, it's a nice contrast to the usual depictions of intense physical explosions or long passages of silence. It's refreshing to see such a natural reaction.
The film has a few script problems, especially a secondary story about George's parents. But when it focuses on the sweet, confusing, frustrating, and truthful relationship between the central characters, The Art of Getting By shows that even a well-worn genre can be given new life.
The Art of Getting By ** (out of four stars)
Directed by Gavin Wiesen. With Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Blair Underwood, and Rita Wilson. Distributed by Fox Searchlight.
Running time: 1 hour, 24 mins.
Parent's guide: PG-13 (sexual content, drinking)
Playing at: area theaters
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