mandy's recommendations

This film has always been trashed ever since it was made which really is a shame since it's obvious that those who trash it must have skimmed through their teen years with little to no problems. This film starts with a few teens who for whatever reasons (which you learn as you go through the film)have been put in Saturday detention , It is basically about learning to deal with yourself and whatever problems that present themselves throughout your teen years (learning to deal with peoples differences being the main target here) It is basically set in the school library as they serve their time (do their detention) , I loved the idea of a teen film with just the one set and with them dealing with problems that are only associated with teens , Let?s face it, it's too easy to make a film like ?American Pie? and ?Road Trip? where there is no real need to concentrate on the dialogue or the characters it takes real genius to make a teen movie where the characters and the dialogue is all there is.

Very disappointing. Almost deliberately gimmicky, the film is also too clever by half (if you'll pardon the pun). By mixing genres, styles and moods, the directors (whose previous film was the excellent documentary Lost In La Mancha) lose their way pretty quickly. I was never sure whether I was meant to take it all seriously or not. Flashbacks, dream sequences, it was all just a bit much. Plus, the promised rock and roll just didn't move me. I was reminded a bit too much at times of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, a film I found original and moving. But in this case, the songs just weren't as good, nor were the main characters sympathetic.

What a marvelous movie. The music, the cast, the story... Everything perfect.