Charlie (Kevin Zegers) is a troubled teen fighting all the time and getting kicked out of several schools. His home life is a mess. His father (David Schofield) is an angry bully. His mother (Leslie Hope) is also troubled. Juvenile delinquent Lawrence (Justin Chatwin) befriends Charlie and steals a purse but Charlie is the one who gets caught. The principal (James Caan) offers Charlie a job to help Mrs Ritchie (Gena Rowlands) and her two Down Syndrome sons or else get expelled.
This is a nice story written by Paul Johansson. It has a nice poetic touch in some of the twists and reveals. He isn't as good as a director. The style is limited to a TV movie feel. My biggest problem is with lead actor Kevin Zegers. He doesn't bring anything special to the role and he also looks too old. I wonder if Justin Chatwin is a better fit although he's even older. At least, he does that grumpy teen character very well. James Caan is in the movie but his skills are needed more in the important father character. Then there is the one and only great Gena Rowlands. She makes this look easy. It could have been a run-of-the-mill Lifetime movie if not for her.
