George, a lonely and fatalistic teen who has made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, is befriended by Sally, a popular but complicated girl who re... Read allGeorge, a lonely and fatalistic teen who has made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, is befriended by Sally, a popular but complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit.George, a lonely and fatalistic teen who has made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, is befriended by Sally, a popular but complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit.
- Awards
- 1 win & 2 nominations
- Chastity
- (as Sophie Curtis)
- Student
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn the first scene, the camera passes by Tom's Restaurant, the same restaurant featured in Seinfeld (1989), aka Monk's.
- Quotes
George Zinavoy: I read a quote once when I was a kid "We live alone, We die alone. Everything else is just an illusion." it used to keep me up at night.
- Alternate versionsIn the UK, the film was originally seen for advice by the BBFC in a rough cut form. The BBFC advised the filmmakers that the film was likely to receive a 15 rating, but that a 12A rating could be awarded if the strong language was reduced. When the finished version of the film was submitted for a formal rating in the UK, the number of uses of strong language had been reduced from five to one and the film was passed 12A. These cuts appear to have made their way into all releases of the film.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #1.22 (2011)
- SoundtracksWe Will Become Silhouettes
Written by Benjamin Gibbard, James Tamborello aka The Postal Service
Performed by The Shins
Courtesy of Sub Pop Records
It's beautifully shot and edited, and we see many fine performances. I found Emma Roberts particularly appealing, as she has a dour, come-hither look in her dark eyes about 95% of the time. What Ingrid Bergman could achieve by looking down, Roberts does by looking almost right at us.
Freddie Highmore looks and feels authentic. His character has a lot of choices to make, many of which go against all common sense. But although he drives us crazy, he's intriguing and we want to know what's to happen to him.
Mid-movie, the characters are hit with several crises, and it gets interesting as we wonder how they'll resolve them. When resolution strikes, though, it's so conventional that it's disappointing. The expected is unexpected.
Yup, it has indie-feel and Sundance all over it. But I was hoping for a big surprise at the end from these flawed but good people; instead, they seemed to abandon what they had stood for. And what may have qualified as a surprise involving Roberts was simply unbelievable and too convenient to accept. Though I was happy for them, a simple, happy ending didn't feel right with these non-simple characters.
But then, maybe, that was the point.
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,430,241
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $679,160
- Jun 19, 2011
- Gross worldwide
- $1,892,130