American Teen (2008)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Nanette Burstein

Writer:

Nanette Burstein (writer)

Release Date:

11 October 2008 (Japan)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

A documentary on seniors at a high school in a small Indiana town and their various cliques. |

Plot Keywords:

School Life | Spin The Bottle | School Dance | Parent | Break Up

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

US Showtimes:

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Cast

Hannah Bailey	...	Herself
Colin Clemens	...	Himself
Geoff Haase	...	Himself
Megan Krizmanich	...	Herself
Mitch Reinholt	...	Himself
Jake Tusing	...	Himself
Ali Wikalinska	...	Herself

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some strong language, sexual material, some drinking and brief smoking-all involving teens.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS | SDDS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Australia:M | Japan:PG-12

Filming Locations:

Warsaw, Indiana, USA

Company:

57th & Irving Productions

Movie Connections:

References Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Soundtrack:

Members Only

Staged

I kept thinking throughout the whole film that there was something inauthentic to it. It seemed staged. Manufactured. Not all of it but certain plot points seemed "created". That kept me from really enjoying the film. Additionally, Megan's Hate Crime goes largely unpunished, at least what they chose to show. If she had scrawled a racial slur on that young man's window, it would have been taken very seriously. It sends a dangerous message, although that can be said for a lot of this film.

Bottom line on this film for me is that it doesn't feel authentic. It feels false. Even though she probably is guilty of it as well, I never get the feeling proceedings have been staged while watching a film by Barbara Kopple.