Beware the Gonzo (2010) Poster

User Reviews

Review this title
6 Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by Rating:
7/10
Ezra Miller was a standout
arroyojeffrey18 June 2021
Zoe Kravitz are bangable highschoolers. Minus one star for not have the print to bleed.
1 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
high school angst
ksf-215 March 2022
Ezra miller (has played the flash several times) is eddie, who wants desperately to find a scoop for the school paper. When he clashes with the school jock, he gets kicked off the paper. So he starts his own paper. Mom is amy sedaris, who almost steals the show with her over the top, over-bearing yelling and nagging. Who cares about first amendment rights? But it's not that simple. There are more facts to come to light. Can they dig out the whole truth? It's okay. Coming of age story. Written and directed by bryan goluboff. The one film he has directed so far. Showing on the roku channel.
0 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
A bit smarter than the usual high school in-crowd vs out-crowd movie.
TxMike25 May 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Saw this as a Netflix streaming movie. Filmed in Queens and Brooklyn, made mostly by TV-experienced crew and cast. I enjoyed it, not as trivial and silly as many high school comedies are.

It is senior year and Ezra Miller, a member of the school newspaper staff, has adopted the name 'Gonzo' Gilman. He aspires to attend Cornell studying journalism and his idol is the journalist who became known as the first "gonzo journalist" Hunter S. Thompson.

(As a short 'aside', gonzo journalism is a no-holds-barred style that considers the style as important as content, and sometimes a good injection of fiction can make an objective article even more effective in its impact. There is a recent movie, "Rum Diary" based on Thompson's book.)

Anyway the editor of the school paper is favorite son, the popular wrestling hero, played by Jesse McCartney as Gavin Reilly, and just an extension of school policy and heavily edits Gonzo's first article, and soon after kicks him off the staff. Undaunted Gonzo decides he will fight back and start his own 'underground' newspaper, complete with a website, enlisting the help of a number of other students.

At first it appeared the movie might degenerate into the usual warring factions, the pretty and popular girls plus the muscled jocks against the not-so-attractive geeks. And, that basically is the division used here, but the story develops along a more meaningful line than many high school movies. The underground newspaper does uncover some issues, like the unhealthy operation of the school cafeteria, but it also gets the participants threatened with expulsion.

Pretty and exotic Zoe Kravitz is Evie Wallace, who has gained a not-so-nice reputation but in fact she is a fighter against the in-crowd and has a very helpful working knowledge of the internet and building web sites.

Effective are Amy Sedaris as Diane Gilman and Campbell Scott as Arthur Gilman, Gonzo's parents. As well as James Urbaniak as Principal Roy who just wants to gloss over everything.

Ultimately the movie is a type of 'coming of age' story, primarily for Gonzo Gilman, but also for several other characters.
8 out of 13 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
4/10
Disappointing
Seth_Rogue_One6 August 2016
The general idea for the movie is not bad, although fairly typical and clichefilled... And boasting of stereotypes.

About students rebelling against the system.

I usually enjoy these sorts of movies but I didn't like this too much.

A big issue was the main character, he's supposed to be the typical lovable 'loser' but he comes across as a big of a arrogant douchebag as the people he is rebelling against half the time.

In the beginning we see him making fun a out of a disabled girl when his friend claims that he has the hots for her, saying that she is like the female version of the elephant man etc.

I mean, this is the guy that we are supposed to root for and think is the champion of the underdogs? Occasionally it gets some things right, but not very often.

I really like Zoe Kravitz usually but she couldn't save this movie, but I suppose she didn't have much to work with.
3 out of 7 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
A Fist of Two Thumbs
andynarce23 November 2022
Eddie 'Gonzo' Gilman is a come-to-age student, in an upscale high-school of New York city, and he has a column in the student's paper.

He adopted his nickname, from Hunter S. Thompson's alternative journalism ('Gonzo style'), and so he is such a freedom fighter, against the establishment (usually keeping him down): the principal of the school and the elite students, controlling everything.

At the same time, though, all of them (good and bad guys) must keep their scores and discipline with a tight grip, in order to qualify for college.

Gonzo revolts, though, releasing his own paper (The Gonzo Files), in such a conflictive way, challenging everything and everyone at school, for the sake of justice.

In such a crusade, Gonzo also adopts Hunter S. Thompson's symbol: a hand closed in a fist, with two thumbs.

'Beware the Gonzo' is a very complex (and violent) movie, and yet it has the fluency of an absorbing primetime TV-show, thanks to the expertise of its producer, Bryan Goluboff (the same of 'Law and Order: SVU').

The movie doesn't have any moral agenda anyhow, it's just an entertaining movie with a solid story.

It was produced by the organizers of the 'Tribeca Film Festival', also in New York.
1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
What a disappointment!
onleyrichard29 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Starts strong--more in spirit than quality--then midway through the third act, totally sells out its initial premise, and gives young people exactly the message that they DON'T need: Never try to buck the system, never try to fight injustice, they'll just win in the end, and bring you down as they climb up on your back. The hell with that--we need the spirit of rebellion this movie initially started with now more than ever.
1 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

See also

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews


Recently Viewed