No Alternative

This film centers around teen siblings, Thomas and Bridget, in the late 90s. Both of them use music as a tool to express their feelings, but they are into different genres. Thomas is inspired by grunge and Kurt Cobain, while Bridget enjoys rap and hip-hop.

The experiences these teens go through in the late 90s are as real as they come. Drugs and depression are just a few of the experiences they go through as they try to grasp who they are and who they want to be. I was born in the 80s, so this was not my high school experience, but it slightly reminded me of the short-lived tv show My So Called Life with Claire Danes and Jared Leto.

This movie didn't just portray real life, but was inspired by William Dickerson's life and Bridget's rap persona, Bri Da B, is largely influenced by his late sister. It touched on a lot of stuff that people don't want to talk about but need to - mental illness being one of them. This movie was hard to watch at times because it was real, but it was well-written and told a story of music and teen angst in the late 90s.

Full Disclosure: This hits very close to home for me. That being said, I have tried to remove myself and evaluate the movie as a separate entity from my emotions. I believe that the story nails three separate points - youth in the 1990's, mental illness and music as a societal influence. (Let us not overlook all of the era-centric "oohs" & "ahhs" from the cassette tapes, clothing, make-up and the clear bedroom telephone!)

That being said, I have never understood why being born in 1980 made me an '80's kid. Most of my "growing up" years were spent during the 1990's. Back then and not much different from now, you felt your way as you went. You waded through community and pop-cultural standards as you attempted to morph yourself to fit their mold. I do not know if you could ever really "fit in" one way or the other, but you did you damndest.

As I was in the process of finding myself, I was sort of like a Magic 8 Ball. I had a bunch of Mee all floating around inside and I never really knew which one was going to pop up each day. My style as I graduated grammar school and into high school was a weird morph of so many influences. I rocked a mix of the following cringe-worthy get-ups:

* The Valley Girl (purple leggings and a neon tee, tied up in a knot of course)

* The Hip-Hop (dressed like Aaliyah - God rest her soul - with a sports-bra-type tank, layered by a plaid flannel with matching boxers that were not-so-unintentionally sticking out of my baggy jeans)

* The Alternative -ish (Long-Sleeve Offspring SMASH Tee - "Bad Habit" was my angry jam! Don't hate - I was tame. LOL!)

* The IDKWTF (when I ventured to a local, popular high school's Battle of the Bands one year, dressed in my gangsta attire but sporting a "wallet chain" to maintain my essentials and could be seen head-banging my long dark hair to alternative music. It was perplexing to all around.)

Yes! I was very confused! I was also an artist who was trying to "find herself." I have hit so many lows in my life, as well as highs. This story - this movie - not only brought me back to relive my youth, but also woke me to a stark and polarizing realization. Even now, even at my age, having somehow survived and (dare I say) thrived, sometimes you just need to reach out. That goes both ways!

-> If you are feeling lost, low, hopeless, scared: REACH OUT!

-> If you know someone feeling lost, low, hopeless, scared: REACH OUT!

This story awakened me to a stark reality. I have floated around the universe and never even known a fraction of the passion that these siblings have. I am extremely moved and inspired.

NO ALTERNATIVE brings light to mental illness and depression, something that I am keenly familiar with, as are so many of us. It also beckons to each of us to find our deeper self. It is a wake-up call asking two questions:

"What are you doing with your life?"

and

"What cues are you missing in someone else's life?"

Teenagers. Their music. Their loneliness. And their own refuges. It is not easy to define it because it can be discovered as portrait of 1990 decade, about parenthood, about friendship, music and the entire ball defining the teens life, including suicide . It is not a remarkable film. Only a decent one, with beautiful sparkles of acting and a good soundtrack.

I guess I'll be the first with a negative review for this movie. Scoring this movie with the highest score possible is just ridiculous. A perfect ten means to me that you could watch this movie over and over without being bored so I challenge everybody that scored it with a ten to watch it three times in a row. It's a movie you just watch once and than forget everything about it within the week. There are some 'good' scenes, mostly music scenes, where I smiled but overal it's just not worth your time. The acting wasn't that great either. It's low budget and it just shows.

No the first time watching a Coming-of-Age movie so I know how these generally go, but there's something different about this movie, teens are rowdy and rude to their parents but their teen angst moves to seeking validity and the way their confusion and anger is shown, their immaturity is represented and is show and it's relatable because one way or another one felt relating to the suffering of these characters and especially I was misdiagnosed for ADHD as a teen so it hit home, definitely looking out for the producers and cast in the future