When I saw "bullying", I thought "Oh, geez, another over-the-top, sensitive, feel-good movie that doesn't make a real point." but Contest isn't so far off from real life, although it tosses in a few over-the-top points, which are supposed to help the viewer become aware, not distract them from the message.
It's obvious that it would be tricky to attack bullying without seeming ridiculous, especially since no one really knows how to handle it in real life. I suspect that everyone has been bullied in real life, especially the bullies, but dealing with it in in real life always seems to be non-confrontational.
It's also obvious that everyone in the film tried to make it work and that there was some good chemistry between the characters. Daniel Flaherty's character, Tommy, seems as good a victim as you would hope--someone who just can't catch a break, but still hard-working and caring. It's evident in a scene where he's being swindled by another teen who says his parents lost their jobs. Kenton Duty's character, Matt, doesn't really seem a bully though his brother Kyle does, but that he doesn't want to be bullied, so he goes along with it rather than be ostracized by the rest of the team, and tries to have some fun along the way. Katherine McNamara's character, Sarah, is the intelligent, don't-take-no-for-an-answer type. Tommy's grandmother is the only character that seemed unrealistic, as she wanted to cook for the bullies, to ply them with food, to make them see reason. I don't know of any place in the northeast where that works and I don't recall a grandmother who wasn't at least a little feisty. Still, along the way she has words of wisdom and becomes the voice of reason.
There is plenty of scheming and double-dealing and you might need a score card to keep up with who is on which side. Sarah seemed to be keeping up with most everything, but strangely never threatened.
In the end, things work out pretty well for Tommy, despite the minor disasters and soul-searching but all the scheming behind the scenes because of Kyle and Joe made me wonder if Matt was safe. Kyle and Joe didn't seem to learn or regret and there weren't any real consequences that would make them change their minds. Wrapping up the story with a perfect ending is fine when you don't have a fabric store full of loose threads, like a 1960s sitcom.
