Picture Day (2012)

A rebellious teenager forced to repeat her last year of high school is caught between adolescence and adulthood - and between two very different male admirers.

Director:

Kate Melville (as Kate Miles Melville)

Writer:

Kate Melville (as Kate Miles Melville)

Stars:

Tatiana Maslany, Spencer Van Wyck, Steven McCarthy

5 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tatiana Maslany	...	Claire
Spencer Van Wyck	...	Henry
Steven McCarthy	...	Jim
Susan Coyne	...	Ruth
Fiona Highet	...	Annie
Mark DeBonis	...	Lewis
Catherine Fitch	...	Vice-Principal
Monica Dottor	...	Paula
Joanne Boland	...	Margot
Melissa Jane Shaw	...	Lucy
Brandon McGibbon	...	Travis
Michael McAdam	...	Greg
Joshua Teixeira	...	Randy
Jamillah Ross	...	Gym Teacher
Troy Lebane	...	Young Henry

Storyline

Claire Paxton is a rebellious and independent late teen, her outlook on life which is driven largely by the fact that her single mother is a self absorbed alcoholic. Claire is repeating some of her senior year classes at Toronto's Arthur Meighen High School in order to graduate, which she decides to do during the school year rather than waste her precious summer doing it in summer school. She has little motivation to attend classes or graduate. Her school year is affected largely by her encounters with two males with who she ends up spending much of her time. The first is Jim, the thirty-something front man for the funk band, the ElastoCitizens, with who she embarks on a sexual relationship. The second is Henry, a ninth grade student who she used to babysit. Henry is an exceptional student, but is at a stage in his life where he too is starting quietly to rebel against his straight-laced upbringing. Claire acts as his mentor in his coming of age, which may change if she knew that ...

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Plot Keywords:

high school | student | slacker | underachiever | slut | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content, drug and alcohol use and language - all involving teens

Did You Know?

Quotes

Claire Paxton: Attempted suicide gets you more ass than a toilet seat.

User Reviews

Terrific lead performance in a smart coming-of-age story

Now here's an insightful little teen film that gets the angst of coming- of-age without having to resort to the same old clichés. "Picture Day" from promising first-time filmmaker Kate Melville is a sensitive portrayal concerning a couple of teens going about the daily grind.

The reckless, wannabe rebel Claire (Tatiana Maslany), forced to attend an extra year of high school, befriends the socially awkward Henry; a boy she used to babysit years earlier. Claire is unaware of their history at first, but Henry isn't, and in fact has never abandoned his long standing, secretly obsessive crush.

"Picture Day" is well written and unpredictable, but it is the terrific work of Maslany (a revelation on TV's "Orphan Black") that makes the film succeed. She's a quirky, natural performer and at 28 somehow plays a high schooler with utter conviction. Her character is flawed, brash, but realistically drawn and we root and sympathize with her. Melville rests a lot on Maslany's performance to great results.

The plot goes some places that don't really work, and some scenes are in need of a good trimming, but this is never the less a rarity in the teen genre; one that favors character development, leisurely pacing, and no easy answers.

This is smart, good-natured indie fare with a terrific performance at it's center. It's imperfect sure, but memorable and well worth seeking out.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 April 2014 (UK)

Also Known As:

Picture Day

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Foundry Films, Snitch Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Color:

Color