If coming-of-age, indie-styled films of late will have us believe, every white, privileged school kid is a volatile mass of unresolved angst and superior intellect, waiting to explode on an uncaring, uncompromising world around them. Debut feature writer-director Gavin Wiesen has joined the ‘cool kids’ gang of film-makers, championing the secretly chic and misunderstood nerds with his new drama, The Art Of Getting By, starring a grown-up (and seriously malnourished-looking) Freddie Highmore of The Spiderwick Chronicles and Finding Neverland fame.

As George Zinavoy, Highmore is a lonely and fatalistic NYC teen who’s (somehow) managed to make it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work. He finally befriends another being on the school rooftop called Sally (Emma Roberts), a popular but complicated girl who recognises in him a kindred spirit.

This highly sensitive and (over) emotionally complex take on ‘kidulthood’ uncertainties mixes darker moments with tender ones, and reveals Highmore’s blossoming talent into manhood and adult roles. The unfortunate thing for both actor and Wiesen is this side of the adolescent movie market has been well and truly staked by the likes of Michael Cera, Anton Yelchin and Jesse Eisenberg, and is full to bursting with their troubled personas on screen. That’s not to say Highmore cannot join their acclaimed ranks as he performs his best with what he has to play with here, but the inexperienced and rather pretentious and predictable script from Wiesen doesn’t help matters.

Giving us musical prompts, such as cranking up the tinkling ‘upbeat’ soundtrack to signify George’s decision to join the real world, is not a satisfactory explanation as to why this over-analytical teen, who almost could be deemed as having a case of Asperger’s syndrome, has decided to join the rank and file of everyday ‘normality’. If it’s just to get the girl (Sally) – turning this into a romantic offering, it seems the intellectual George is selling himself short for no apparent reason. Yes, love makes you do the craziest of things, and through Sally, George finally gets his entry into carefree adolescent existence. But if we are to believe that his character is more than your average teen, the transformation is executed in an incoherent manner, undermining what’s special about ‘Teflon slacker’ George and his outlook.

Communication is the key – if you are talking the same language. Even though Roberts as Sally sees her kindred spirit in George, being someone locked into performing as she is expected to in life, it still feels a little farfetched that this hip chick would have oddball George round to party on Manhattan’s rooftops with her ultra cool friends, let alone grow to fancy him. Again, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder’ and spotting his artistic talent might be cause enough to get Sally hooked – and she does make it back from the airport departure gate in record time to see his final art piece, like something from an episode of Friends. Admittedly, Roberts plays the part of ‘awkward teen in a vixen’s body’ rather well to rival Highmore’s rather unsettling appearance, but hardly gives a defining performance in her career to date. It’s as though Wiesen has restrained some of Sally’s true character traits and feelings in this to focus on the turbulent universe that centres on George, which is a shame for both character arcs.

Wiesen almost attempts to boldly address teen depression at the start of The Art Of Getting By, which could have been a more intriguing premise. He then changes tempo to a film focused on young puppy love and making the right life choices that it feels so uneven at times without a stronger, passionate vein of, say, unfrequented longing, that it goes to confuse both characters and audience in the process, all disguised in quirky, prattle-heavy tension. The good thing is Highmore and Roberts will not necessarily be affected by their turns in this, even though the latter has had her acting wings clipped by her seemingly undeveloped role here, pointing to more exciting talent from them to come.

[Review:2/5]

To celebrate the release of The Art of Getting By on 2nd September, Fox Searchlight Pictures have given us two goodie bags and two posters signed by Freddie Highmore to give away!

The movie is written and directed by Gavin Wiesen and stars Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano, Elizabeth Reaser, Sam Robards, Jarlath Conroy, Ann Dowd, Marcus Carl Franklin, Sasha Spielberg with Rita Wilson and Blair Underwood.

THE ART OF GETTING BY stars Freddie Highmore (Finding Neverland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) as George, a lonely and fatalistic teen who’s made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, who is befriended by Sally (Emma Roberts – Scream 4), a beautiful and complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit.

To be in with a chance of winning these great prizes, simply answer the following question using the form below:

Who directed the movie, The Art of Getting By?

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED

The small print:

• Open to UK residents only
• Only one entry per household will be counted
• The competition will close 5th September at 23.59 GMT
• The winner will be picked at random from entries received
• No cash alternative is available

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

Beginning life in 2007 with Arthur and the Invisibles (which at that time, was the most expensive French production in history), the third entry in this children’s animated series (co-created and directed by Luc Besson) comes to DVD. A mixture of live-action and computer animation, this is the tale of a young boy called Arthur (Freddie Highmore) who yet again finds himself teaming up with his mystical friends, The Minimoys. They are little elf-like creatures who live in the woods, and this time around, the two worlds collide as villain Maltazard escapes from his miniature surroundings with a potion which enables him to grow to human size. Arthur calls on the help of his friends Replay and Snow and they too, venture to the outside world in an attempt to stop Maltazard.

With elements of The Borrowers and A Bug’s Life, Arthur and the Great Adventure (which is also, rather confusingly, billed as Arthur 3: the War of the Two Worlds, state-side) will certainly appeal to many kids out there, but unlike the recent critical and commercial hits to stem from both Dreamworks Animation and Disney/Pixar, apart from a witty little homage to Star Wars, there is little here to engage an adult audience. Everything is pitched at a child-like level, and many of the flesh and blood grown-up cast give extremely broad and irritatingly OTT performances, even for a kid’s flick. Once again, it’s left to the computer artists to do their best to create a world of wonder, and for the most part, they do an admirable job.

The CG characters integration into the real world is surprisingly impressive, particularly the now-huge and imposing Maltazard (voiced by a less-than-enthusiastic Lou Reed of all people!) whose interaction with both Arthur’s family and the broader human world is as flawless and believable as the crustacean-like aliens in District 9. Highmore (last seen as a young Nigel Slater in the small-screen adaptation of his biography, Toast) once again plays both the live-action and Minimoy-ied Arthur (a transformation achieved by a magic telescope) and gives a pretty likable performance in each world.

There’s little here to suggest Besson’s directorial imprint on the material (although Maltazard visage resembles a slimmed-down version of Zorg’s canine-looking henchmen in the director’s intergalactic yard, The Fifth Element), but many of the action scenes (both in the digital and real world) have an exciting, cinematic flair to them and the live-action sequences (set in a nondescript, small-town 1960’s America) are imbued with a crisp, nostalgic gleam – a vision palette that appears to be a precursor to Besson’s recent big-screen release, The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec.

Although Arthur and the Great Adventure is extremely unlikely to give Lasseter and Co. any sleepless nights, there’s enough imagination on display here to keep kids entertained, although with a running time of over 100 minutes, it may test the patience of a very young audience.

**½~~ (2.5/5)

To celebrate the release of Luc Besson’s latest movie, Arthur and the Great Adventure on DVD & Blu-ray 2nd May, Entertainment in Video have been kind enough to give us five copies of the movie to give away on Blu-ray.

Acclaimed and visionary director Luc Besson, in the follow up to Arthur and the Invisibles, brings us this brilliant, live action, computer animated, family adventure, starring

Freddie Highmore, Mia Farrow and Selena Gomez with Snoop Dogg, Will.i.am, Fergie (Black Eyed Peas), Iggy Pop and Lou Reed.

When Arthur uncovers a distress call sent from Minimoys, the invisible people who live in his own back yard, he knows that once again, he must embark on a great adventure to battle against the evil Maltazard and save Princess Selenia. Little does he know that this is an evil trick by his arch nemesis to reverse the magic of transformation to become a giant when Arthur passes into the Minimoy’s world. Now at less than half an inch tall, Arthur must save his own world from a giant evil Maltazard.

Will this little hero have what it takes?

To be in with a chance of winning a copy of the movie, all you have to do is answer the following question using the form below:

Who plays the character of Arthur in Win Arthur and the Great Adventure?

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED

The small print:

• Open to UK residents only
• Only one entry per household will be counted
• The competition will close 2nd May 23.59 GMT
• The winner will be picked at random from entries received

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

Fox Searchlight have unveiled the first US trailer for The Art of Getting By, formerly titled Homework.

Directed by Gavin Wiesen, The Art of Getting By stars Emma Roberts (Scream 4), Freddie Highmore (Finding Neverland), Michael Angarano (Ceremony), Elizabeth Reaser (Sweet Land) and Alicia Silverstone (Clueless).

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

The Art of Getting By premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival to mainly positive reviews, and will open in the US on June 17.

Check out the trailer below:

Source: MTV

I don’t get to watch too many kids movies but a couple of years a go, my friend Stuart kept telling me that I needed to watch Arthur and the Invisibles which I’d never heard of. Eventually he ended up lending me the DVD and up until How to Train Your Dragon, I couldn’t deny that it was one of the best kids movies I’d ever seen. Luc Besson did a fantastic job blending the live and animation sections of the movie perfectly with a wonderful, great story, which is sort of an Alice in Wonderland tale.

After the success of the first movie, Besson has created Arthur and the Great Adventure which sees Freddie Highmore, back as the lead character alongside a cast which includes Selena Gomez, Stacy Ferguson, Mia Farrow, Jimmy Fallon, Snoop Dogg, Will I Am and Lou Reed.

Synopsis: When Arthur uncovers a distress call sent from Minimoys, the invisible people who live in his own back yard, he knows that once again, he must embark on a great adventure to battle against the evil Maltazard and save Princess Selenia. Little does he know that this is an evil trick by his arch nemesis to reverse the magic of transformation to become a giant when Arthur passes into the Minimoy’s world. Now at less than half an inch tall, Arthur must save his own world from a giant evil Maltazard. Will this little hero have what it takes?

Arthur and the Great Adventure hits UK cinemas this Friday, 24th December. Scroll down to view the trailer and poster.

Here’s the brand new UK trailer and poster for Astro Boy which we can expect to see at our local cinemas 29th January 2010. Check out the trailer below and click the poster to enlarge.

Directed by Dave Bowers (Flushed Away), and written by Bowers and Timothy Hyde Harris (Kindergarten Cop). “˜Astro Boy’ is based on the manga created by Osamu Tezuka. A thrilling tale of a true hero, Astro Boy is an all new, feature film of action, adventure, humour and art and brought to life on the big screen in breathtaking CGI animation.

Synopsis: Set in futuristic Metro City, Astro Boy is about a young robot with incredible powers created by a brilliant scientist named Dr. Tenma (Nicolas Cage). Powered by positive “˜blue’ energy, Astro Boy (Freddie Highmore) is endowed with super strength, X-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly. Embarking on a journey in search of acceptance, Astro Boy encounters many other colourful characters along the way. Through his adventures he learns the joys and emotions of being human and gains the strength to embrace his destiny. Learning his friend and family are in danger, Astro Boy uses his awesome super powers and returns to Metro City in a valiant effort to save everything he cares about and to understand what it takes to be a hero.