Terri

The misfit in high school is a tried and true indie genre (were ANY indie filmmakers well-adjusted jocks in high school?). So one approaches yet another example of the breed with some weariness, expecting certain marks to be hit, especially when the protagonist is, as here, hugely overweight. And indeed he is unpopular with his phys ed teacher and gets more than one comment about his breasts. But all manner of subtle variations make this one unique from the start, starting with his mixed relationship with his uncle (a surprisingly touching turn by "The Office"'s Creed Bratton), whose condition - Alzheimer's? - makes him sometimes the one needing care, but whose age and fundamental compassion also make him the caretaker (in the never explained absence of Terri's parents). Perhaps because of this ambivalent situation, Terri has a strong sense of self which takes him from the start out of victim territory, prompting him, for instance, to defiantly wear pajamas to school. His relationship with John C. Reilly's assistant principal character is similarly ambivalent, since as a mentor the latter is both empowering and disappointing. The two other students who become his friends are similarly displaced yet defiant and the film is rich in both vulnerability and self-assertion. The quiet intrigues of the film are not the stuff of stirring plot, but do show Terri and his friends in their own messy, determined way becoming themselves in a way that is, almost unobtrusively, optimistic and uplifting.

Having watched this film without any idea what it was about, I was completely surprised by it. It was a film similar to Napoleon Dynamite but yet it was in a class of it's own. I found myself glued to it, it both captivated and left me wanting more from it. At no point did I want to turn it off, the comedy was just perfect but not in a take the mickey way, it just worked. It's been a while since I have seen a film of this finesse and it does a good job of showing how hard life can be if you that little bit different, whilst showing the side of life rarely seen for a person who is a carer. A large body, a large heart and a large round of applause to the script writers and of course Terri himself.

Greetings again from the darkness. Indie films are at a disadvantage on many fronts, not the least of which is budget. That usually limits the indie scene to personal, poignant stories of relationships and self-discovery. Quirky, yet believable characters are often the difference between ho-hum and worth-seeing. Writer Patrick Dewitt and Director Azazel Jacobs definitely provide some curious characters of interest.

Jacob Wysocki portrays Terri, an overweight outcast who is often humiliated and bullied at high school. Terri seems to have given up on ever fitting in. The proof is in the pajamas that he has begun wearing to class every day. But as usual with "troubled" teens, there is more to the story. We see his home life which consists of constant care for his Uncle James (Creed Bratton from The Office), who is apparently suffering from dementia. We get no backstory on the missing parents, but it's clear that Terri's responsibility at home outweigh his concerns for a missing social life at school.

Enter Assistant Principal, Mr. Fitgerald. Played by John C Riley, Mr. Fitzgerald takes a special interest in the 'monsters and misfits'. The reason is pretty obvious ... he was one himself. His goal, even his life's calling, is to encourage these kids to understand that life gets better and that NO ONE really has it figured out. We are just doing the best we can.

Terri's world collides with a couple other students. Chad (Bridger Sadina) is so angry at the world that he pulls his hair right out from his scalp - and is quick with a cutting line, though he clearly just seeks attention. Heather (Olivia Crociacchia) is saved from expulsion after a very generous move by Terri. Her world of popularity comes crashing down, but Terri is the presence that gets her through. Watching these characters interact with Mr. Fitzgerald emphasizes how much we all need someone to care ... someone to believe in us.

The film moves at a realistic to life pace. That means it is very slow compared to most movies. The characters are allowed to develop, as are most of the scenes. Jacob Wysocki's performance can be compared to Gabourey Sidibe in "Precious". They are large youngsters who don't use their size to comedic effect. Instead, they both display humanity and real emotions in a less than perfect world.

Certainly not a movie for everyone, but if you enjoy intimate stories about people just trying to get through life ... no special effects, explosions or asinine punchlines ... then Terri is worth a look.

Terri is just not your average movie. I can understand why some do not like this: you have to let yourself in on it. At first I was not immediately carried away, but as the story continues I slowly but surely got sucked in.

I would not call it a comedy at all, though some scenes made me smile. It touches on subjects which keep your mind occupied on that age (and later too, though different;-).

The movie shows lessons of life which some learn early in their life, others have to live through and never learn. It shows us we can make mistakes, we will, and we even have to if we want to "learn life".

I understood it got a more restricted rating than the average action movie. I can only think it has to do with the sexual subjects it contains, but I think it is done in such a way that you can only learn good things from it if you're young.

Cinematography does not do anything new, but it's a lot better and fitting than the shaky camera's of the 100 million dollar movies that came out lately.

So, lessons in life here!

As we know, high school can be a difficult and challenging place for even the most socially adaptive student. For those who are different in one way or another, it can be misery, and alienated students do not always find a compassionate counselor or friend to steer them through the tough times. In the movies, however, it is often a different story. We have seen several films recently about teens that have lost their way but somehow find the perfect mentor to support them. The latest example of this is Terri, a new film by Azazel Jacobs, whose 2008 Momma's Man, was a work of rare honesty about a recently married man who falls into a psychological paralysis that keeps him from accepting the reality of his adult life.

Though the genre of teen misfits has been done before, Terri looks at the situation from a different vantage point and the result is a film of unusual freshness. Based on a screenplay Jacobs wrote with novelist Patrick Dewitt, Terri brings together an unlikely friendship between Terri (Jacob Wysocki), a heavily over-sized parentless teenager who lives with his Uncle James (Creed Bratton) who is in the beginning stages of Alzheimer's, Chad (Bridger Zadina), a skinny, androgynous-looking youth with a high-pitched squeaky voice who directs his anger towards himself by pulling his hair out, and Heather ((Olivia Crocicchia), an attractive girl who has developed an unfortunate reputation around school for inappropriate sexual acting out.

Terri is consistently late to school and comes to class dressed in pajamas because he feels they are more comfortable. He is constantly teased and bullied by those who do not understand (and perhaps never will) the meaning of empathy. His behavior, while otherwise normal, can be bizarre. When his uncle asks him to set traps for mice in their attic, Terri takes the traps out into a wooded area near his suburban home and gleefully watches the dead mice being torn to shreds by devouring falcons. His tardiness and odd behavior draws the attention of the school's vice-principal Mr. Fitzgerald (John C. Reilly) who sets up sessions with Terri each week for counseling. Attempting to play the role of buddy rather than authority figure, Fitzgerald calls Terri "dude", uses "hip" language, and exchanges high-fives, but his behavior often feels strained.

Terri learns to appreciate the attention he is given, however, and, though he is tight lipped at the beginning of the meetings, he slowly begins to open up and express his feelings. Fitzgerald also has his problems at home and is not averse to sharing them with Terri. His sharing about his personal life, however inappropriate it may be for a school administrator, does provide a more level playing field and a closer relationship grows between the two people struggling to make sense of the world. An awkward late night party at Terri's house filled with drugs, alcohol, and sexual experimentation could have become a disaster, except for Terri's new found sense of self that allows him to know intuitively when to back off.

There are few dramatic movements in Terri, no sudden insights, and no startling epiphanies backed by the swelling chords of an orchestra. There is, rather, simply a growing ability of the characters to see beyond their differences to discover their common humanity. While the question of what Terri can do to lose some weight is oddly never brought up either by his mentor or his friends, Terri is a sweet, tender, and very observant film about young people coming to terms with the reality of their being different. It is not a cruel film in the slightest but one that conveys a sincere affection for its troubled characters, and the natural performances of Wysocki, Zadina, and Crocicchia make it a film to remember and cherish.