*SPOILERS HEREIN*
Watching the kind of world the kids from Larry Clark's drama 'Bully lived in, you wonder what happened to them. It appears that no outside forces subjected them to their lifestyles; rather it was a personal choice. From Mustang driving, suburban teen sexstress Ali to whacked out acid-freak Donny, these kids have no apparent purpose other than to exist.
No, these kids have sex early and often with multiple partners, do most every kind of illicit drug, and participate in mindless entertainment such as 'Fatality' video games. The adults in this story aren't the problem because of what they do; it's what they don't do. None of them seem to truly care where their children are or what they are doing, and obviously neither do the kids.
The teens curse at will in front of their parents (an automatic backhand in my house growing up) and stay out until, well...whenever. Adults in this film have few lines because they do and are nothing, both to their children and in their eyes. Clark succeeds mightily here, as he makes every attempt to shift the blame to where it truly belongs- the children. There is no visual evidence that any of them go to school, work, or have any kind of ambition in life.
The characters make the most of their screenplay. Brad Renfro fabulously plays the tormented, picked-on best friend Bobby. While he excels, Clark could have casted this part much better. Renfro is too adult and distinguished looking to play the senseless teen character of Marty Puccio. He looks so out of place sunk into a couch shirtless, rapping alongside Eminem, shouting "I hate it when the cut the (bleep)in' swear words!"
Stahl shines as Kent, playing the homoerotic violent dominating personality. The real show-stealer is Mike Pitt, who plays druggie Donny. The scene in which Kent is driving to his own murder talking with Ali, Heather, and Donny is amazing. Pitt's facial expressions and line of `No dude, it's Donny.definitely Donny' is funny, subversive, and scary as hell all in one. The best scene in this film. Leo Fitzpatrick, while out of place as the Mafia Hitman, is excellent as well, as is Derek. While most every actor/ess Clark casted performs well enough, the blame falls on him for casting them out of place and his screenplay.
Bully builds up the murder of Kent for most of the film, and gives lots of reasons for why it happened. The only character you gather even the slightest twinge of sympathy for is Marty. He's been picked on, and beat up by Kent his entire life. One thing I didn't understand is when he fights back after arguing with Kent after accidentally damaging his Camaro and Kent coldcocks him twice. Kent then puts his arm around Kent and apologizes for his indiscretions. Did this happen with the real life Kent/Puccio? If so, why didn't Puccio fight back more?
It appears that the excess teen sex depicted was supposed to 'bother' or 'disturb' the audience. The kids screw each other like rabbits. After a while, it seems that Clark is showing the nudity just to push buttons. Renfro and Rachel Miner (who plays Lisa) have sex in quite a few scenes. The point is proven early in the film that the two have an odious boy/girlfriend relationship, and have sex often. Clark made a large mistake by inserting clips of the two of them, fully nude, engaging in sex acts at pointless moments.
The teen nude tip doesn't stop there. Connelley apparently likes to have phone conversations topless, and while Ali is having a phone chat, the camera drops down to her crotch, partially exposing her vagina. And while Connelley is checking for pregnancy, Clark sees fit to show her walking to, using, and walking from the toilet fully nude. The only legitimate explanation is that Clark wants to overshock people with this drivel. It takes a lot away from Bully.
While the murder build up is intense, the fallout is not. It appears Clark has little interest in what happened following Kent's murder. Nothing is mentioned regarding the police investigation and little has to do with the trial. I found that most disappointing. All that is implied is that one of the kids is a snitch and caused them to get caught. The irony here is the hit on Kent was so haphazardly and sloppily planned by brainless drug addicts, these kids were doomed from the moment Connelley told Puccio "Let's kill him."
In the end, Bully is disturbing, but not in the way Clark envisioned it. It's sad because this film could have been so much more. It ends up looking like a way for Larry to show more teen nudity/sex, drug use, and otherwise moronic behavior. The actors get an "A" for effort, but not even the mightiest performances can save it from mediocrity. GRADE- 6/10.
P.S.- For those who have seen the trailer, did you catch the ad ploy? When the movie's tagline is displayed, "It's 4AM, Do You Know Where Your Kids Are?" 'Kids' is italicized. Touché Mr. Clark.touché.
Watching the kind of world the kids from Larry Clark's drama 'Bully lived in, you wonder what happened to them. It appears that no outside forces subjected them to their lifestyles; rather it was a personal choice. From Mustang driving, suburban teen sexstress Ali to whacked out acid-freak Donny, these kids have no apparent purpose other than to exist.
No, these kids have sex early and often with multiple partners, do most every kind of illicit drug, and participate in mindless entertainment such as 'Fatality' video games. The adults in this story aren't the problem because of what they do; it's what they don't do. None of them seem to truly care where their children are or what they are doing, and obviously neither do the kids.
The teens curse at will in front of their parents (an automatic backhand in my house growing up) and stay out until, well...whenever. Adults in this film have few lines because they do and are nothing, both to their children and in their eyes. Clark succeeds mightily here, as he makes every attempt to shift the blame to where it truly belongs- the children. There is no visual evidence that any of them go to school, work, or have any kind of ambition in life.
The characters make the most of their screenplay. Brad Renfro fabulously plays the tormented, picked-on best friend Bobby. While he excels, Clark could have casted this part much better. Renfro is too adult and distinguished looking to play the senseless teen character of Marty Puccio. He looks so out of place sunk into a couch shirtless, rapping alongside Eminem, shouting "I hate it when the cut the (bleep)in' swear words!"
Stahl shines as Kent, playing the homoerotic violent dominating personality. The real show-stealer is Mike Pitt, who plays druggie Donny. The scene in which Kent is driving to his own murder talking with Ali, Heather, and Donny is amazing. Pitt's facial expressions and line of `No dude, it's Donny.definitely Donny' is funny, subversive, and scary as hell all in one. The best scene in this film. Leo Fitzpatrick, while out of place as the Mafia Hitman, is excellent as well, as is Derek. While most every actor/ess Clark casted performs well enough, the blame falls on him for casting them out of place and his screenplay.
Bully builds up the murder of Kent for most of the film, and gives lots of reasons for why it happened. The only character you gather even the slightest twinge of sympathy for is Marty. He's been picked on, and beat up by Kent his entire life. One thing I didn't understand is when he fights back after arguing with Kent after accidentally damaging his Camaro and Kent coldcocks him twice. Kent then puts his arm around Kent and apologizes for his indiscretions. Did this happen with the real life Kent/Puccio? If so, why didn't Puccio fight back more?
It appears that the excess teen sex depicted was supposed to 'bother' or 'disturb' the audience. The kids screw each other like rabbits. After a while, it seems that Clark is showing the nudity just to push buttons. Renfro and Rachel Miner (who plays Lisa) have sex in quite a few scenes. The point is proven early in the film that the two have an odious boy/girlfriend relationship, and have sex often. Clark made a large mistake by inserting clips of the two of them, fully nude, engaging in sex acts at pointless moments.
The teen nude tip doesn't stop there. Connelley apparently likes to have phone conversations topless, and while Ali is having a phone chat, the camera drops down to her crotch, partially exposing her vagina. And while Connelley is checking for pregnancy, Clark sees fit to show her walking to, using, and walking from the toilet fully nude. The only legitimate explanation is that Clark wants to overshock people with this drivel. It takes a lot away from Bully.
While the murder build up is intense, the fallout is not. It appears Clark has little interest in what happened following Kent's murder. Nothing is mentioned regarding the police investigation and little has to do with the trial. I found that most disappointing. All that is implied is that one of the kids is a snitch and caused them to get caught. The irony here is the hit on Kent was so haphazardly and sloppily planned by brainless drug addicts, these kids were doomed from the moment Connelley told Puccio "Let's kill him."
In the end, Bully is disturbing, but not in the way Clark envisioned it. It's sad because this film could have been so much more. It ends up looking like a way for Larry to show more teen nudity/sex, drug use, and otherwise moronic behavior. The actors get an "A" for effort, but not even the mightiest performances can save it from mediocrity. GRADE- 6/10.
P.S.- For those who have seen the trailer, did you catch the ad ploy? When the movie's tagline is displayed, "It's 4AM, Do You Know Where Your Kids Are?" 'Kids' is italicized. Touché Mr. Clark.touché.