Coming of Age films have a very special charm in many ways (Prom. Lemonade Mouth, and so on).
These films somehow appeal to the more gently inclined audiences of all ages in that instead of delving into the dark side of human nature, they really always try to look on the bright side and who doesn't appreciate that motto!
It isn't just a matter of a happy ending, feel good films, it's also the way they paint a picture of the characters in a very positive way.
The Duff- recently released in the UK- may seem like a standard coming of age film and in many ways it is; we find the usual elements of self discovery, pain leading to enlightenment and truth as well as obstacles that must be overcome in order to reach a more grown up vision of life, but it is different in one sense in my opinion and that is that it doesn't make a caricature of the individuals, ie; we do not grossly identify with one or the other or take sides very readily because the grey areas are given as much importance as the black and white features of the players in the film.
The Heroes/girl and boy are not your clean cut box type princess/prince, home coming king and queen, they are not all beautiful or all unattractive, all clean cut or well spoken or completely hopeless from the start to require a full on reversal of character, they are in fact somewhere in between: they swear a little, joke a little, are sometimes serious and others not, but the main plot requires them to discover who they are, what they want and how they define themselves and each other.
This may not seem out of the ordinary for this type of film but it did call my bluff in that I was expecting a much narrower view of characters and was pleasantly surprised by a few twists and turns in the players' psyche as it were. They do surprise you in an 'out of the box kind of way' in what they say quite often throughout the film, even if how they act and where they end up is fairly predictable.
My favourite scenes are in the mall, both as interactive scenes as well as the when the main actress carries out a mini monologue and action packed theatre style performance which was actually quite funny and I imagine not easy to follow through with.
Talented young actors and a couple of rising stars perhaps? Comedy is never easy; the timing needs to work well with the setting and tone to make the mood comic. It's a magic formulae difficult to define and sometimes best as an instinctive impulse born of talent in a special inspired moment, than a thoroughly thought out plan of comic action. The Duff (short term used for group elected unattractive friend) plays her part very well indeed combining strong character acting skills and a natural knack for comedy.
Speaking of Malls, I heard Paul B. Mall Cop 2 might be worth a few laughs, I will check it out, and if you beat me to it let me know if it's a funny sequel because those are quite rare in terms of script creativity and dialogue..
Remember to laugh a little every day its as a good as an apple to keep the Doc away (and I don't mean a Snow White type apple!:))
These films somehow appeal to the more gently inclined audiences of all ages in that instead of delving into the dark side of human nature, they really always try to look on the bright side and who doesn't appreciate that motto!
It isn't just a matter of a happy ending, feel good films, it's also the way they paint a picture of the characters in a very positive way.
The Duff- recently released in the UK- may seem like a standard coming of age film and in many ways it is; we find the usual elements of self discovery, pain leading to enlightenment and truth as well as obstacles that must be overcome in order to reach a more grown up vision of life, but it is different in one sense in my opinion and that is that it doesn't make a caricature of the individuals, ie; we do not grossly identify with one or the other or take sides very readily because the grey areas are given as much importance as the black and white features of the players in the film.
The Heroes/girl and boy are not your clean cut box type princess/prince, home coming king and queen, they are not all beautiful or all unattractive, all clean cut or well spoken or completely hopeless from the start to require a full on reversal of character, they are in fact somewhere in between: they swear a little, joke a little, are sometimes serious and others not, but the main plot requires them to discover who they are, what they want and how they define themselves and each other.
This may not seem out of the ordinary for this type of film but it did call my bluff in that I was expecting a much narrower view of characters and was pleasantly surprised by a few twists and turns in the players' psyche as it were. They do surprise you in an 'out of the box kind of way' in what they say quite often throughout the film, even if how they act and where they end up is fairly predictable.
My favourite scenes are in the mall, both as interactive scenes as well as the when the main actress carries out a mini monologue and action packed theatre style performance which was actually quite funny and I imagine not easy to follow through with.
Talented young actors and a couple of rising stars perhaps? Comedy is never easy; the timing needs to work well with the setting and tone to make the mood comic. It's a magic formulae difficult to define and sometimes best as an instinctive impulse born of talent in a special inspired moment, than a thoroughly thought out plan of comic action. The Duff (short term used for group elected unattractive friend) plays her part very well indeed combining strong character acting skills and a natural knack for comedy.
Speaking of Malls, I heard Paul B. Mall Cop 2 might be worth a few laughs, I will check it out, and if you beat me to it let me know if it's a funny sequel because those are quite rare in terms of script creativity and dialogue..
Remember to laugh a little every day its as a good as an apple to keep the Doc away (and I don't mean a Snow White type apple!:))
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