Gretchen (2005) User Reviews

An Embarrassment

[NJtoTX · 3/10 · 13 March 2006]

Gretchen is an attempt at a farce-based dark comedy about a dorky, stuttering, clumsy high school student who is having an extremely difficult time communicating, to say the least. Courtney Davis looks about 10 years too old for the part of Gretchen, who acts about 8 years old, keeps falling for grubby long-haired guys who look like Meat Loaf, are apparently mentally retarded, and who will assuredly ultimately betray her ("do you know what a pattern is, Gretchen?). And then there's dad.

It's The Jerk meets Benny and Joon, with a only a touch of Welcome to the Dollhouse. And it is slow.

Many in the audience found it funny, but many in the audience worked on the film or knew the filmmakers. When a big cheer goes up for the key grip credit, you haven't exactly been hearing an accurate audience reaction to a film.

By the way, I really liked Punch Drunk Love (see other User comment).

boring, few redeeming qualities

[capps4983 · 3/10 · 24 June 2006]

i just saw this movie at the LA film fest last night. it was dreadfully slow. the actors were not believable as high school students. they all did a good job, they were just too old for the parts. the attempt at "symbolism" was weak at best. it was like they were trying to make a smart artsy film, but failed on the smart. as the movie ended, i was just happy to get out of there. Gretchen is an odd geeky girl with a crush on a bad boy (who is also overweight and nasty). they make out, but he also makes out with other girls. Gretchen goes crazy, only to find herself in a treatment center for teens. and guess what! she falls for another bad boy. soon we meet her father, an even bigger looser. will Gretchen break out of her pattern of falling for losers, and attacking the girls they sleep with. honestly, by the end, you wont care.

Ignorance at it's finest

[melanie-68-286375 · 2/10 · 27 June 2011]

Not worth the time for a review. But since IMDb.com says that I have to write at least ten lines, here goes.

The wigs were ridiculous, the actors, especially the males were a joke. I kept hoping, waiting for this movie to get good because I love independent films, but not only was the movie very slow paced, it was not at all good.

This movies showed what should have been the progression of the main character, but all she did was slide backwards. It was so boring that I thought of changing the channel the whole way through, but decided I would try to be fair and watch it entirely. In the final scene,my first thought was that I had just wasted a half an hour.

Sort of Napoleon Dynamite meets Clockwatchers

[stevecauley · 8/10 · 13 March 2006]

Gretchen tells the story of 17-year-old Gretchen Finkle (Courtney Davis), an awkward high school girl who has an infatuation with bad boy Ricky Marichino (John Merriman). One night Gretchen's mother finds Ricky in Gretchen's room and forbids Gretchen from ever seeing him again. Gretchen's infatuation with Ricky only seems to grow, but when she spies Ricky making out with another girl, she soon sinks into depression until she finally punches the girl in the eye.

This violent outburst lands her in a home for emotionally unstable teens where, again, she falls for another bad boy, Nick Rangoon (Macon Blair). Nick and Gretchen escape the home together one night, but the "romance" of being on the lamb with him wears off fast. She then decides to seek out her father (Stephen Root), who had abandoned the family when Gretchen was very young. But dear old' dad, who works a very unglamorous job at a greasy hamburger joint, isn't very excited about being a family man again, so he takes off in the night, leaving Gretchen despondent and ready to head back to the troubled teens home. When she finally "graduates" from the home for troubled teens, she heads back to her old school where she's ready to face her fears and overcome her obsession with Ricky Marichino.

The movie is often very funny, if a little slow in places. The whole situation of running away from the home with Nick drags on a bit, although one of the funniest scenes in the movie, a visit to a rather unspectacular "rave," occurs during this episode. And seeking out the dad and moving in with him almost seemed out of place, but Stephen Root's performance is so hilarious that it would be a shame if it wasn't there. Also, the dad bears a striking resemblance to Ricky and Nick, leading us to conclude that Gretchen's quest for "true love" really has more to do with a desire to connect with her missing father.

Courtney Davis nails the performance of an awkward and socially confused 17-year-old girl (but truthfully, she doesn't look 17). Although Gretchen desires to be "bad," she cannot escape her innate innocence, much like Toni Collette's character in Clockwatchers. John Merriman and Macon Blair are equally perfect as angst-ridden bad boy wannabees.

Stephen Root, who gave us the bizarre "Milton" character of Office Space, is even stranger and funnier in Gretchen. Gretchen's futile attempts to communicate with him are among the most hilarious moments in the movie.

Writer/director Steve Collins has delivered a very funny and poignant slice of teen life in this his first feature film. It will be interesting to see what follows for all the talented folks associated with this film.

Give it a shot, its worth it

[theimperious · 10/10 · 15 March 2006]

A hilarious, tongue-in-cheek depiction of an awkward girl's bad-boy obsession.

I heard this referred to as "Napoleon Dynamite with a female lead." That is accurate to a point. While Gretchen does employ the subtle, dead-pan humor that is found in the utter niavety of the main character, this is where the similarities between Gretchen and Napoleon Dynamite end.

This movie uses that humor to explore and approach serious questions of suburban life in modern America and incorporates those common themes of isolation, danger seeking (by finding that exciting bad-boy) and that snowballing phenomenon of rejection that occurs in high school.

This film is slow paced, so it is not the best choice for a party, but perhaps if you have an hour and a half to appreciate this movie and its very reserved brand of dark humor, you should be pleasantly surprised!

Reminiscent of "Punch Drunk Love"

[backwardsjen · 9/10 · 19 March 2006]

"Gretchen" is a sweet, funny coming of age movie about Gretchen Finkle – the most awkward 17 year old you've ever met. She dresses like she's twelve, hasn't been past second base, and has less than zero self-confidence. She seems to only be attracted to loser guys who treat her terribly, and the movie is about her journey to figure out why that is.

The director walks a fine line between making fun of Gretchen and letting her break your heart, and some people might not get it. I thought the tone was refreshing, and totally different than most "teen" movies (In the end, Gretchen might not become a popular cheerleader or "get the guy", but you still cheer for her all the way.) The actors aren't actually in their teens, however, which is part of what makes it funny. This is a movie made by adults who are looking back on those high school years, and commenting on how over-the-top dramatic everything was. It's funny, and painful.

I watched "Punch Drunk Love" again the other day, and realized that "Gretchen" is much more similar to this movie than to "Napoleon Dynamite" or "Welcome to the Dollhouse" (the two movies that I've seen it often get compared to). Gretchen is like a teenage version of Barry – lonely, scared, and harboring a pent-up rage that comes out in totally the wrong ways (Barry smashes a glass door; Gretchen scratches a classmate in the face). But unlike Barry, Gretchen hasn't yet met the person that's going to help her come out of her shell. We're just dropping in on her painful high school period.

"Gretchen" also has a similar tone to "Punch Drunk Love" (the way it skirts the line between comedy and drama), and there is a similarity in the look of both movies (precise compositions, dead-center framing, or the way the camera will rest for a long painful close up of Gretchen's face). Overall, if you enjoyed "Punch Drunk Love", I think you will probably enjoy "Gretchen".

Lots of heart

[kevin-540 · 8/10 · 29 June 2006]

Great and lovely characters swim through a back drop of ugly dilapidated small town life in this slow burn character study that is touching, funny and poignant.

The film takes it's time to really allow us to see inside the mind of the title character, Gretchen (a charmingly tortured Courtney Davis). The film also boasts a wonderful supporting cast (with Becky Ann Baker who brought wonderful life to the unfairly cancelled Freaks and Geeks years ago) and creatively depressing production design including a fast food joint that God forgot (complete with gurgling nacho cheese machine) and the lamest techno rave ever conceived (at least they sold popcorn for 50 cents).

Great work to everyone involved and congrats on your success.

Awesome

[mherrera00 · 10/10 · 23 March 2009]

I often scan the Sundance Channel for films that catch my eye and I thought I would give this movie a try and I was mesmerized from the very first minute! I loved this quirky movie about a sweet, socially awkward girl who falls in love with the bad boys. I loved her mother's soft and loving approach toward her. She was such a pure, innocent darling who wanted to fit in somewhere and who longed for the love she missed out on by not having a dad. I loved her tenacity, especially upon meeting her dad and it turns out she and her dad are so much alike, too! Adorable film, I couldn't take my eyes off it and I loved every minute of it!!

Fan Tas Tic

[gb63 · 10/10 · 4 November 2007]

This movie is so perfectly realized that I want to kneel down in its presence.

So well written, so well directed, so well shot.

And the cast is incroyable!

Courtney Davis' performance is a masterful physical comedy tour-de-force. An amazing amalgam of the dorkiest girl you ever knew - and an evil hurricane of danger (for those women who dare make out with her man).

I'm afraid to say too much more, because raising expectations for future viewers always screws things up.

But I loved this movie. So gentle. So brilliantly conceived. It builds to an unexpected climax that is completely original, and fantastically realized.

Oh what a movie, what a movie.

Joy joy, joy on earth.

So Many Feelings

[lindsaymichelleyoung · 10/10 · 3 March 2015]

I picked up this movie @ a video store in Austin based on the cover. Had to know who this character was! Immediately after watching, I bought it online. My god, this is a perfect movie. The irony of adults acting out teenage insecurities, the anxiety-inducing hilarity of the pacing, jean on jean & patterned turtle necks. Some scenes reminded me of "Welcome to the Dollhouse," like when Gretchen is on the corded phone talking to a boy and her mom is in the kitchen, elated at the sweet idea of a boyfriend for her daughter, completely unsuspecting of the adult nature of the call. The mom, Becky Ann Baker, plays the SAME kind of mom she does in Freaks & Geeks. Warm, understanding, desperate to save her daughter from the pain of adulthood.

I think what this film does so well, what makes it different, is that its just as sad as it is hysterical. I hurt so badly at times in this movie for Gretchen, but that doesn't stop me from pointing & laughing. The settings are also great - the way Gretchen's mother's house feels like a comfortable cage, her father's house feels like a squatter's, the restaurant she temporarily works at is as pathetic seeming as her attempt to fit in there, the "rave" club is as elementary & hopeless as her escape, etc. The character's wardrobes are just fun. I don't know what year we're living in during this movie, but it doesn't matter.

This movie gave me a lot of feelings, more than Gretchen, probably. And it took me days to shake them. I can't wait to see Courtney Davis again in another Steve Collins flick, "You Hurt My Feelings" - I suggested it to be ordered to my local video store.