This movie has gotten a fair bit of early praise so I was expecting something a bit better. However, it was a worthwhile viewing, a reasonably realistic portrayal of high school kids dealing with all the modern issues of growing up.
Miles Teller is the lead character as Sutter. He seems very happy-go- lucky and friendly with everyone. He even has some skill helping others realize things that may not be apparent. But he has a very dark personal side. His dad left home when Sutter was maybe 8 or 9, and he had no contact with him after that. He didn't even know where he was or how to contact him. Perhaps as a result, or certainly contributing, he had no ambition. He was smart, but sloughed off homework. And he had developed a drinking problem, he never seemed comfortable unless he was sipping some type of booze.
After one night of binging he ended up on someone's front lawn, and had no idea where his car was. Shailene Woodley as good girl Aimee was up early for her mom's paper route, she finds him, wakes him up, gives him a ride, and they start to get to know each other for the first time even though they are both seniors in the same school.
The role of Aimee was a difficult one to play realistically. She is a smart girl with a good work ethic, and not really shy, but feeling that she didn't have the looks or the interests to make her a popular girl. At one point she even says she has no "old boyfriend" to think about. Sutter begins to take an interest in Aimee after his girlfriend broke off with him, plus he needed tutoring to pass Geometry. They become friends and more, but it never seems that Sutter is really interested in her.
There is a scene or two where Sutter and Aimee drive 3 hours to look up his dad, after his older sister gave him contact information. That didn't turn out well because his dad was preoccupied with his friends and almost totally ignored the kids, even asking them to pick up the tab for the pitchers of beer. Sutter realizes he is becoming just like his dad.
The story wraps up with hope, as Aimee gets into the college she wants and Sutter manages to graduate, while also realizing he has to get himself out of his self-destructive spiral. It doesn't try to tie everything up in a neat package, only to say that there is hope if you realize that NOW is the time to look at your life and do something with it. The past is interesting and important, but it is not the NOW.
Miles Teller is the lead character as Sutter. He seems very happy-go- lucky and friendly with everyone. He even has some skill helping others realize things that may not be apparent. But he has a very dark personal side. His dad left home when Sutter was maybe 8 or 9, and he had no contact with him after that. He didn't even know where he was or how to contact him. Perhaps as a result, or certainly contributing, he had no ambition. He was smart, but sloughed off homework. And he had developed a drinking problem, he never seemed comfortable unless he was sipping some type of booze.
After one night of binging he ended up on someone's front lawn, and had no idea where his car was. Shailene Woodley as good girl Aimee was up early for her mom's paper route, she finds him, wakes him up, gives him a ride, and they start to get to know each other for the first time even though they are both seniors in the same school.
The role of Aimee was a difficult one to play realistically. She is a smart girl with a good work ethic, and not really shy, but feeling that she didn't have the looks or the interests to make her a popular girl. At one point she even says she has no "old boyfriend" to think about. Sutter begins to take an interest in Aimee after his girlfriend broke off with him, plus he needed tutoring to pass Geometry. They become friends and more, but it never seems that Sutter is really interested in her.
There is a scene or two where Sutter and Aimee drive 3 hours to look up his dad, after his older sister gave him contact information. That didn't turn out well because his dad was preoccupied with his friends and almost totally ignored the kids, even asking them to pick up the tab for the pitchers of beer. Sutter realizes he is becoming just like his dad.
The story wraps up with hope, as Aimee gets into the college she wants and Sutter manages to graduate, while also realizing he has to get himself out of his self-destructive spiral. It doesn't try to tie everything up in a neat package, only to say that there is hope if you realize that NOW is the time to look at your life and do something with it. The past is interesting and important, but it is not the NOW.