The Education of Charlie Banks
Another coming of age drama where the subjects are a little more grown up but the lessons are still necessary
Tags: Misc DVD 2009 Categories: DVD/TV Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Daniel "monk" Pelfrey on Jun 30th, 2009
The short answer is, yes, Fred Durst can direct.
The Education of Charlie Banks has as much notoriety for its director as it does for the subject matter. This “coming of age” drama seems to have gotten overshadowed by the notoriety of its director and his “day job” rather than any merits the film has on its own. Usually this sort of notoriety comes at a price, and in this case people will simply forget what the film is about and just think of it as the film directed by the singer.
The story is not your typical “coming of age” film where it deals with adolescence, but instead an emotional and intellectual awakening where the subject becomes an adult to himself and society. Through a flashback we are first introduced to our protagonist, Charlie, while he is on the school bus. Looking out the window we are introduced to the film’s antagonist, Mick, the neighborhood tough who at an early age already has a reputation that proceeds him.
Flash forward a few years and in high school we meet the two again. This time there is violence and the police get involved. Things don’t necessarily go as they should, and the incident is forgotten. Then we move on and the real film begins. It takes a little under 20 minutes for the main story to pick up as Charlie is in college and moving on with his life. The past then suddenly appears in his room and things take a bit of a dark turn with overtones of foreboding.
My problem with The Education of Charlie Banks is not the director or subject matter, or even the cast, but simply the pacing which is best suited as a novel. Everything moves about as predictably as… predicted, but too often the film takes its time, and too much of it. We all know the guy who is a jerk simply walking into a situation that isn’t his and takes over. This isn’t anything new, and the film itself doesn’t bring anything new to the table either.
Is the film worth watching? I’m having a hard time recommending the film because it is so slow. It’s not bad, but just… sort of sits there.
The DVD comes with a featurette that examines themes and the making of the film that runs a little over 20 minutes. It goes a bit deeper than the usual fluffy and insubstantial featurettes we are used to seeing, which was nice. Fred Durst and star Jason Ritter turn in an audio commentary for those that are interested.
I wanted to give the film as much of an open-minded chance, and I think I succeeded. Had Fred Durst used the Alan Smithee name instead of his own, my reaction would be the same – find something else to rent.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
| + Well acted | 5.5 |
| What Doesn't | |
| - Slow pacing - Predictable | |
| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| It's not bad - just not that good. | |
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Tags: Misc DVD 2009
Posted by Daniel "monk" Pelfrey on Jun 30th, 2009 and is filed under DVD/TV Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
