The Art of Getting By (2011)

George, a lonely and fatalistic teen who has made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, is befriended by Sally, a popular but complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit.

Director:

Gavin Wiesen

Writer:

Gavin Wiesen

Stars:

Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Freddie Highmore	...	George Zinavoy
Emma Roberts	...	Sally Howe
Sasha Spielberg	...	Zoe Rubenstein
Marcus Carl Franklin	...	Will Sharpe
Ann Dowd	...	Mrs. Grimes
Maya Ri Sanchez	...	Cynthia
Blair Underwood	...	Principal Martinson
Ann Harada	...	Mrs. Dougherty
Rita Wilson	...	Vivian Sargent
Jarlath Conroy	...	Harris McElroy
Elizabeth Reaser	...	Charlotte Howe
Andrew Levitas	...	Javier
Sam Robards	...	Jack Sargent
Alicia Silverstone	...	Ms. Herman
Michael Angarano	...	Dustin

Storyline

Believing the quote that you are born alone, die alone and everything else is an illusion, George doesn't see the point of life, school, or homework. Then he meets Sally and he now has a reason to go to school and make friends, even if he's not ready to admit to himself or to her that he likes her. The school's principal and art teacher introduce him to an alumni, and successful artist, Dustin, who can help guide George along life's path, but other distractions start surfacing, and George might not even be able to graduate from high school.

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Plot Keywords:

principal | artist | high school | homework | art teacher | 

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Taglines:

Everybody's got some.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements including sexual content, language, teen drinking and partying

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 June 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Homework

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$679,160, 17 June 2011, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$1,429,260, 10 July 2011

Company Credits

Production Co:

Goldcrest Pictures, Mint Pictures, Island Bound Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the first scene, the camera passes by Tom's Restaurant, the same restaurant featured in Seinfeld (1989), aka Monk's.

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Quotes

Principal Martinson: Just be careful, they have an easier time of getting by than you do.

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Alternate Versions

In the UK, the film was originally seen for advice by the BBFC in a rough cut form. The BBFC advised the filmmakers that the film was likely to receive a 15 rating, but that a 12A rating could be awarded if the strong language was reduced. When the finished version of the film was submitted for a formal rating in the UK, the number of uses of strong language had been reduced from five to one and the film was passed 12A. These cuts appear to have made their way into all releases of the film.

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Connections

Featured in Maltin on Movies: Bad Teacher (2011)

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Soundtracks

We Drink On The Job
Written by Aaron Espinoza
Performed by Earlimart
Courtesy of Palm Pictures, LLC

User Reviews

Another good movie made even better by the acting. Highmore & Roberts will be winning Oscars soon. Good watch. I say B+

"We all die alone, so why am I supposed to spend my life working, sweating, struggling...I have better things to do with my time." George (Highmore) is a high schooler who has pretty much given up. Bitter with the world and his mother he refuses to do anything and hasn't done a real day's work in his entire senior year. He meets Sally (Roberts) who sees the same thing in herself. This is a very good movie made better by the acting. Highmore, in a departure from his usual disgustingly good boy roles is excellent in this. Roberts, who is fast becoming a better actress then her aunt is, is also fantastic in this movie. The role of George is written to be a total jerk to most people he meets, but Highmore has enough "baggage" with him that even though he is not nice to almost everyone in the movie you still wind up rooting for him and wanting him to succeed by the end. That is a rare thing for an actor that young. While this is a very good movie that forces you to keep watching it does tend to drag in a few places, but not enough to be boring. If that makes sense. Overall, a very good movie with great acting that is a definite watch. The type of movie that all high schoolers should watch. I give it a B+.

*Also try - Happythankyoumoreplease & It's Kind Of A Funny Story