Monday, September 5, 2011

American Bully

Brandon O’Leary (played with raw intensity by Matt O’Leary) is one of the angriest teenagers you will ever see in a movie. He’s angry about school. He’s angry about his life and, in the months following the 9/11 terrorist attack, he’s mad at the world outside his limited middle-America range. Suspended from school for sending a fellow student a link to a graphic video of terrorists beheading an American soldier, Brandon spends the day drinking with friends and looking for trouble. He finds what he is after when he meets the student who turned him in over the video and decides to teach him a lesson. Passionately directed by Dave Rodriguez, the film is almost too relentless in its effort to portray Brandon’s anger. There’s no other point of view offered to any believable degree, and without it, the film lacks the balance it needs to make the story complete.

No comments: