Assassination of a High School President

I'd been resisting watching this movie mainly because of Mischa Barton but thankfully a trailer for the movie convinced me otherwise or else I'd have missed this little gem.

For me this movie was a neat satire of several types of movie settings. It's a mystery through and through but it satirizes styles such as 1940s detective noir, prison dramas, conspiracy theories, and high school movies. And it does it well to a certain extent.

The movie is not perfect- it's not that well polished and I felt that some of the actors were a little to laid back but it's a little nitpick. The tone of the mystery was well maintain throughout with subplots and little twisters popping along to keep the movie going. Sure the mystery wasn't mystery-proof...you could guess where it was heading before it happened but it was still a fun ride.

The performances were decent, not brilliant, but not over the top. Mischa Barton was the sole sore point- she didn't really do anything with her bad girl character. Perhaps it may be because she wasn't given much screen time but in that case why have her. The movie wasn't going to be a must see for everyone in any case and any no name fledgling, and better looking, actress could have done an able job. Still, I'm biased against her so I still maintain she sucked and brought the movie down a little.

I'd still recommend this movie as it worth watching- the mystery is great- who stole the SAT sheets and it's fun watching Bobby Funke try to meander his way to the truth, much like a roving ace reporter, and there's never a dull moment.

I had never heard of this movie and found it laying around in one of my friends large DVD collections. After reading the back I thought I would hate it. I don't know why I torture myself watching movies that I think are going to make me cry to the gods to stop people from making these horrible artsy films, but I do. It seemed like a low budget stylized sort of art film that managed to pull in some mid level stars and in aging one in Bruce Willis. Not my kind of film. I was wrong!(apparently ignoring my gut turns out to be a good idea, but usually it's still torture)

This was really a fun quirky, little movie that I actually enjoyed. The story is fairly sophomoric. A high school cheating scandal that the student newspaper, and the grizzled old war veteran Principal (Bruce Willis) are trying to get to the bottom of.

The acting in this one is admittedly over the top, but that is the strength of this movie. It is suppose to be over the top which provides the humor throughout. Mischa Barton plays the pretty girl, so that was no stretch, Bruce Willis's tough guy image works wonderfully for his character as well.

I won't get into the whole plot/ storyline as anyone can read it above, but it was a pleasantly surprising, humorous story that I would definitely recommend. I am usually not even into this kind of movie but I really enjoyed it. It was much better than sitting through another stupid Harry Potter movie that's for sure.

So if you find yourself bored with nothing to watch, pop this fun little gem in the DVD player. Its a fun one that I think is definitely underrated and worth a view.

Like my reviews? Hate em? Questions? Comments? Have a DVD that you want reviewed? SHoot me an e-mail at: subliminal.lithium@gmail.com

I saw this film at Sundance at the Salt Lake screening. I have to say I was really surprised by how much I liked it. This is NOT your typical high school movie. It's the antidote to say movies like High School Musical. I'd call it Rushmore meets the Usual Suspects or John Hughes on acid or something. The characters were great, Bruce Willis was excellent and most of all it was absolutely, laugh out loud hilarious. I can't believe this film hasn't come out yet. I'm really looking forward to seeing it again. I get the feeling it could go on to become one of those Lebowski type comedies. There was so much stuff packed in there that it should get better every time you see it.

High School. Four of the most important years of your life. But it isn't always dances and keg parties and sucking face in your parents' mini-van. Sometimes it's ugly and hard and complicated. As complicated as a conspiracy to overthrow the president. There's something rotten at St. Donovan's High and sophomore newspaper reporter Bobby Funke is on it like pink rubber bands on your little sister's braces. When senior hottie Francesca Facchini solicits Funke's help tracking down a set of stolen SATs, Funke uncovers a story dirtier than the lunch lady's mustache. After he fingers the school president (figuratively) for the crime, Funke becomes one of the most popular kids at St. Donovan's High. No longer known simply as the freshman who was once tied to a giant snowman penis, Funke wins the respect of everyone from the Desert-Storm-hero-turned-educator Principal Kirkpatrick to the kid that farts on him in Spanish class. When Francesca takes Funke to homecoming, even the in-school suspension delinquents turn nice and offer guidance on how to keep his boner in check during slow dances. But high school's not always what it seems. As Funke's popularity grows so do his suspicions. Did the president really steal the SATs? Or is Funke just a pawn in a conspiracy as complicated as adolescence itself? Determined to find the truth, Funke digs deeper and unearths the sordid underbelly of St. Donovan's. Student council members, college bookies, public school brats, everyone seems to play a part. Armed only with a learner's permit and the spirit of Woodward and Bernstein, Funke must crack the case before it cracks him...Assassination of a High School President is a high school noir comedy with a good performance by its lead actor, Reece Thompson but besides this performance there's not much here worth seeing. Although the film does create a mysterious and tense atmosphere, the effort to do so is constantly undermined by ridiculous jokes and ridiculous characters that basically turn the film into a parody.The story unveils nicely but at the same time, it's not that interesting and it's definitely not original.Bruce Willis who plays the Principal, overacts during his entire screen time and fails miserably at being the comic relief and Misha Barton seems to have lost all her acting-skills since leaving The O.C.. Definitely not worth seeing, but if you really want to watch a film-noir with a high school setting, watch Brick(2005),a much more interesting, and better written film.

5.5/10

ASSASSINATION OF A HIGH SCHOOL PRESIDENT is a big step above most of the teen movies that focus on potty mouth dialogue and absurd situations just to get laughs. Writers Tim Calpin and Kevin Jakubowski have come up with a script that is sometimes smart but ultimately full of holes in deciding where it wants to take the original premise of this high school movie. Director Brett Simon seems to sort of let the movie flow as it develops, preventing a tight telling of a story with potential.

Bobby Funke (Reece Thompson, a promising new talent) is a nerdy newspaper reporter who is never able to finish a story. Student Body President/basketball star/ladies' man Paul Moore (Patrick Taylor) seems to have everything Bobby wants, including the attention of the school's most beautiful girl Francesca (Mischa Barton). As fortune would have it a crime happens - the SATs are stolen from the office of Principal Kirkpatrick (Bruce Willis playing Bruce Willis) and Booby is on the investigation and story, a story that points to Paul as the perpetrator. Bobby's nerdiness is transformed by his attention and by the affections of Francesca, and soon the school collapses under the cloud of the crime. It is how the 'crime' is inspected and resolved that ends the film. For Bobby Funke it is a matter of 'What price glory'.

The cast is fresh and it is a pleasure to see some new faces with promise. Whether it is the director's or the sound mixer's fault, much of the dialogue is swallowed by the soundtrack, a problem thankfully solved by turning on the subtitles. This is a movie with promise from all involved and it will be interesting to see if it has an impact on teen flick quality.

Grady Harp