Twelve and Holding

I feel the last reviewer was a little out of touch with reality. They felt the movie was too 'extreme', but I was actually drawn closer to the characters because the writer portrayed them as VERY real and believable. If I was that age, and someone did what was done to the boy in the movie, prison would be the least of their worries. These kids, and ALL kids, are not the innocent 'Beaver Cleavers' most adults think (or wish) all kids are. I for one, remember when I was 12. I did things like these kids did, and more. I was sexually active in a same sex relationship with someone older, another issue is addressed in the movie, and could relate to it even though the relationship portrayed in the movie is heterosexual. It is VERY rare to see ANY reference to adult - adolescent "relationships" where the adolescent is the sexual aggressor, and NOT the adult. It may be an ugly subject, but it IS reality.

I give this movie an 11 on a scale of 1-10. I would also like to thank IFC Films for showing new releases on PayPer View so people who don't have access to theaters showing the films can see them. I wish ALL independent films were available in this manner.

Nice production, good script, outstanding casting, great young actors and well chosen music makes this a gem. One can complain about some of the extremes of the plot, but forgive the excesses and farcical elements for the sake of a well woven story. It begins with four kids, friends growing up in a middle-class neighborhood. A significant event splits the initial single thread into three, each following a child: the precocious Malee making her first amorous exploration; Leonard and his struggle with obesity, not only his but also of his immediate family; and the conflicted Jacob. While the film would classify as a drama, there is a good deal of humor to counterbalance the tension that is maintained throughout. The editing is superb in how it moves nimbly among the threads, keeping us always interested and curious about what will happen to the characters. The young actors deliver their parts with aplomb which combined with excellent directing should make this a success.

The minute this film started playing, I was hooked. The story follows three 12 year olds who are the normal kind of kids you expect to bump into in your neighbourhood. Each has their own issues, as do all 12 year olds, and it is not till an immensely tragic death amongst them occurs, that they start confronting their issues and start trying to deal with them in their own way. Each very different. The story unravels beautifully and there are times you feel like you need to look away, and start squirming with unease and shock, and times you literally burst out laughing and then cry as well.. Well, I did anyway. I would highly recommend this to pretty much everyone I know, I cant believe it slipped through the net, and I have only just seen it. An absolute gem. To say it is like Stand By Me is a bold statement, but a deserved one. Its of the same calibre. Watch it.

Fantastic movie with a multitude of messages. Would make for an excellent movie to show and discuss in schools - I dare you :-) Acting is incredible and pretty much all comes trough the screen as real persons and not some abstractions from a writers imagination.

What hopefully will get through to the viewers is how perceptive children are in reading the adults world both literally and the subtle emotions that adults/parents try to keep them from getting. Since most children doesn't have the experience and information needed to filter all this, it can have some really disturbing consequences when children acts in response as is clearly shown here. Luckily it isn't all children who grow up with these kind of experiences - at least not as extreme, but I'm afraid that a lot of parents would be very scared to know that an awful lot actually can relate to this movie...

This is a haunting coming-of-age film about children, bound by a common, shocking tragedy, who struggle to get on with life and overcome their own troubling problems. Despite the severity of issues conveyed in this film's overlapping vignettes, it never becomes melodramatic. Artful screen writing and direction infuse humor in the telling of these children's stories---stories rich with characters who are colorful, but never contrived. All of the children provide very genuine, endearing performances---essential if the audience is going to empathize with them and their disturbing behavior. This movie will frequently make you uncomfortable---very uncomfortable. But no matter how horrifying and even monstrous these children's actions may be, they never lose their appealing and disarming qualities as children. These are very cool kids, even the most troubled, who easily win your affection.

During the course of the movie, one of the children queries the others by asking, "Do you know ninety-percent of people's problems are due to their inability to get over the past?" All of these children will be faced with this challenge. You hope all will overcome this obstacle, but sadly, not all of them will or should be able to get over their past.