Spellbound (2002)

Spellbound follows eight teenagers on their quest to win the 1999 National Spelling Bee.

Director:

Jeffrey Blitz

Stars:

Angela Arenivar, Ubaldo Arenivar, Jorge Arenivar

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 17 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Angela Arenivar	...	Self - Spelling Bee Participant
Ubaldo Arenivar	...	Self - Angela's Father (as Ubaldo)
Jorge Arenivar	...	Self - Angela's Brother (as Jorge)
Scott McGarraugh	...	Self - Ranch Owner (as Mr. McGarraugh)
Lindy McGarraugh	...	Self - Ranch Owner (as Mrs. McGarraugh)
Concepción Arenivar	...	Self - Angela's Mother (as Concepción)
Mrs. Slaughter	...	Self - Angela's Teacher
Neelima Marupudi	...	Self - Potter County Champion (as Neelima)
Nupur Lala	...	Self - Spelling Bee Participant
Ms. Whitehurst	...	Self - Nupur's Teacher
Parag Lala	...	Self - Nupur's Father (as Parag)
Meena Lala	...	Self - Nupur's Mother (as Meena)
Kuna Lala	...	Self - Nupur's Brother (as Kuna)
Ted Brigham	...	Self - Spelling Bee Participant
Ms. Blair	...	Self - Ted's Teacher

Storyline

This documentary follows 8 teens and pre-teens as they work their way toward the finals of the Scripps Howard national spelling bee championship in Washington D.C. All work quite hard and practice daily, first having to win their regional championship before they can move on. Interviews include the parents and teachers who are working with them. The competitors not only work hard to get to the finals but face tremendous pressure as the original group of over 250 competitors is whittled down and the words they must spell get ever more difficult.

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Plot Keywords:

grand hyatt hotel | washington monument washington d.c. | spelling | national spelling bee | immigrant | 

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Taglines:

Little kids. Big words. American dreams.

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Genres:

Documentary | Comedy | Thriller

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Certificate:

Tous Public

Did You Know?

Trivia

In 2007, it was added to "IDA's Top 25 Documentaries" of all-time by the International Documentary Association ranked #4.

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Goofs

While interviewing Harry in his room the boom mic is deliberately shown after Harry asks "Is that thing edible?"

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Quotes

April DeGideo - Spelling Bee Participant: In summer I kind of worked around 8 to 9 hours a day, but as school began I just worked about 5 to 6 hours a day.

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Crazy Credits

There is no cast list; a cast member is considered credited if a subtitle or an item in the film prints the name (or partial name).

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Connections

Referenced in Brooklyn Nine-Nine: House Mouses (2016)

User Reviews

Wizard film, weird country

In one sense, the U.S. National Spelling Bee is a strange thing, a freakish competition for freaks to take part in, and designed to make them only more freakish. You don't have to understand the words to win, you merely have to spell them, and the winner would seem to have proved little else than their willingness to work hard for no social benefit, and their ability to withstand extreme pressure. Make no mistake, the kids featured in this documentary are bright and talented, but one can't help but wonder whether such ruthless competition, or the attitude that they are in some sense a "gifted" elite, is really good for society or for the individuals themselves.

But it's not the competition that makes 'Spellbound', a documentary about 1999's contest, so gripping (we follow eight of the 249 finalists, but the film is sympathetic to them all, and does not encourage us to set one against the rest). Rather, this comes from the way the 'Spellbound' reminds us what a diverse country America is: ethnically, socially, physically. These kids come from all over, and while on one hand we see a very unusual slice of American life in this film, it's nonetheless a surprisingly broad one. Some of the contrasts are obvious: a family of Indian descent say that in America, if you work hard, you will succeed; but we also meet a family of Mexican descent (who consider that they have worked hard and succeeded, but who have little compared with the Indians), and a black family in a grim district of Washington (arguably failing to thrive after several hundred years). Yet in spite of their differences, their children are all (give or take the final few words) as good as each other (at least when it comes to spelling). Today, social mobility in America is lower than in Europe; but the old American dream, it seems, lives on in the spelling bee. And although the extreme preparation of most competitors appears to place a ludicrously inflated value on the work ethic, and though some (though not all) of the parents are frighteningly pushy, there's also something quite sweet, in this age of guns and violence, in such a fierce competition fought only with words.

'Spellbound' is filmed without tricks, or any special artiness, but nonetheless offers an unexpected insight into contemporary American society. But please let us not copy them and bring the bee back here!

Details

Official Sites:

Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

10 October 2003 (UK)

Also Known As:

Agonisma orthografias

Filming Locations:

Washington, District of Columbia, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$17,508, 4 May 2003

Gross USA:

$5,728,581

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$7,457,710

Company Credits

Production Co:

Blitz/Welch

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min 95 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1