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The Battle of Shaker HeightsRating:
Release Date: 09 December, 2003 Retail Price: $14.99 OUR Price: $13.99 You SAVE: $1.00! Cast: Complete Cast (10 total) |
The Battle of Shaker Heights Reviews
hodge podge
As noted by other reviewers, this film feels like it could of been great: it has excellent performances, potentially intriguing dynamic between the characters, and was clearly approached with heart by the director(s); but, as also noted with other reviewers, Miramax apparently wasn't sure what type of film they wanted, so in the end, you get an ineffective hodge podge that lies somewhere between dark comedy, coming of age drama, and teen slapstick, but fails on all accounts.
Amusing little film.
The Battle of Shaker Heights (Efram Potelle, 2004)
I was pleasantly surprised by this little flick, which hasn't gotten the world's best reviews by a country mile; I'm not sure what folks were expecting, but it seems to me they were expecting a lot more than they got. (This may have something to do with something called Project Greenlight, as the box makes sure to tell us that this is "the Project Greenlight movie!", whatever that may be.) Me, I knew absolutely nothing about it other than that the words "Shaker Heights" are in the name. I wasn't even sure it was the Shaker Heights I was thinking of. So it's pretty fair to say I went into this with no expectations at all, and what I got was a small, but pleasant, surprise. (Oh, and yes, I did get the Shaker Heights I was expecting-- but since I live on the other side of town, I didn't actually recognize anything, assuming it was, in fact, filmed here.)
Kelly Ernsweiler (Holes' Shia LaBoeuf) is seventeen, in high school, and a social misfit, only interacting with others in reenactments of World War II battles. After one of them, he meets Bart Bowland (Lords of Dogtown's Elden Henson), a kid from the other side of the tracks. The two immediately fall to ribbing one another about the differences in their stations, but they becomes fast friends.
There is, of course, a love triangle. Kelly works with Sarah (Shiri Appleby, recently of Swimfan), a pixie-like waif who's obviously got the hots for him, but he's interested in Tabby (Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!'s Amy Smart), Bart's graduate-school-aged sister who's on the verge of getting married. There's also the big fight, though this one's got a minor twist; the other guy is defending his father, a history teacher who spends his days being corrected, argued with, and otherwise hampered in his profession by Kelly (who, as a World War II reenactor, knows a good deal more about the subject than most high-school kids).
It's a coming-of-age tale that's somewhat idealized, sure, but knows when to come back to earth for a breath of fresh air. The acting is at least never less than tolerable, and contains two real star turns by two actors of whom we see far too little these days, Trespass' William Sadler and Twin Peaks' Ray Wise, as the two boys' fathers.
A fun little movie; nothing groundbreaking, but a feel-good flick, in an odd kind of way. Worth your time. ***
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