Rocket Science (2007)
Runtime: 1 hr 41 mins
Theatrical Release: Aug 10, 2007 Limited
Box Office: $601,787
Synopsis: Jeffrey Blitz (2002's SPELLBOUND) directs this comedy that follows in the footsteps of teen outsider indies such DONNIE DARKO, THUMBSUCKER, NAPOLEON DYNAMITE, and RUSHMORE. Set in New Jersey, the film follows Hal Hefner (impressive newcomer Reese Thompson) in his attempts to go through... Jeffrey Blitz (2002's SPELLBOUND) directs this comedy that follows in the footsteps of teen outsider indies such DONNIE DARKO, THUMBSUCKER, NAPOLEON DYNAMITE, and RUSHMORE. Set in New Jersey, the film follows Hal Hefner (impressive newcomer Reese Thompson) in his attempts to go through high school unnoticed. This is made considerably harder by his obvious stutter and inability to verbalize even the most basic statements, not to mention his thoughts and feelings. Bringing him no help are his strange and abusive older brother Earl (Vincent Piazza), his recently divorced parents, his mother's live-in boyfriend, and his school's inadequate speech therapist. When the school's bossy, attractive debate champion Ginny Ryerson (Anna Kendrick) tries to recruit Hal as her debating partner, good sense tells him no but his hormones cry yes, and soon Hal finds himself confronted with growing feelings for Ginny as well as the looming humiliation of having to compete in the state finals. ROCKET SCIENCE features a good cast of relative unknowns, who with the help of a solid script, convey the pangs of adolescent angst and the awkwardness of high school. The film treads familiar territory but does so well, sticking to the story and not getting too caught up in style. The film's soundtrack, which features songs from Clem Snide frontman Eef Barzelay, perfectly matches its indie pedigree. [More]
Genre: Comedies
Starring: Reece Daniel Thompson, Anna Kendrick, Nicholas D'Agosto, Vincent Piazza, Margo Martindale
Screenwriter: Jeffrey Blitz
Producer: Effie T. Brown, Sean Welch
Composer: Eef Barzelay
DVD Info
Release:
Jan 29, 2008
DVD Features:
- Widescreen
Additional Release Material:
- Featurette
- Music Video
Buy It On DVD
Reviews
Writer-director Jeffrey Blitz brings wit and pathos to the story of a compulsive stutterer.
Rocket Science brings the squirm-inducing comedy genre to new heights
...eventually comes off as an engaging and surprisingly affecting little drama...
A witty, touching and offbeat spin on the coming-of-age genre that also offers an amusing look into the surprisingly cut-throat world of high school debating.
Enjoyably offbeat comedy drama with likeable characters and a terrific script, though its relentlessly unconventional nature is ultimately frustrating.
Lovely performances all round create small-town competitiveness, frustrations and aspirations.
Blitz let the story tell itself in Spellbound; this time, he's trying too hard.
It isn't funny; it isn't touching; there's a screamingly annoying and supercilious voiceover-narration, and all its dramatic ideas are bafflingly unfinished and unresolved.
There are few directors in recent years who've captured the goofy yearning of adolescence as tenderly as Blitz.
Compared to the likes of Election and Rushmore, Blitz's film is hardly top-of-the-class, but nonetheless in Hal Hefner - partly thanks to Thompson's fine work - he has crafted an enduring cult figure who deserves a sequel all of his own.
Backed by a fine cast (including sardonic narrator Alec Baldwin), there’s no argument: Blitz is a confident new voice.
There’s a lovely, fragile movie here; if only Blitz had had the faith to let it stand on its own two feet.
It's a small, gently understated film and a poignant tale of a young lad trying find his true voice. Word up.
Spellbound director Jeffrey Blitz fails to recapture the magic of his spelling bee doc with his latest effort - despite the best efforts of the talented unknowns that make up the cast.
The film isn't really laugh-out-loud hilarious - much too painful for that - but it's not supposed to be.
Blitz continues to make a case for himself as a filmmaker with rich, realistic stories to tell.
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