Whatever

What a movie!!! A pleasant surprise I caught purely by accident the other night on the Sundance channel. As a person who was 13 in 1981, this movie struck a chord in me that wasn't just nostalgia. Most of the characters were memorable and more than just a little familiar to me; Ana, VERY real, I knew half a dozen girls like her, including me. Her English professor, the spiteful and vindictive Mr. Stanley, who didn't have a pain in the ass teacher like this? All of the various heads, drunks and sluts that flocked to Friday night keggers and house parties. Even her ever-hopeful, yet terribly sad mother was a brilliant touch. The script was so well written, in that, while there wasn't much of a real storyline, a few days in the life really, even the secondary characters were anything but one dimensional.

I loved the soundtrack as well, not only did it make me want to break out some of my highschool vinyl, it did a great job of enhancing scenes without taking over and drowning out the actors.

The best thing about this movie though, no FAKE, sugary Hollywood ending!