BY MIKEY MIGO
This movie was bad ass. There is no other way to describe it. It’s got a unique story, a different take, and brings something completely fresh to the table. I’ve been a fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt for awhile, but THIS is his best performance to date. Natalie Portman, while not as present as I’d hope, come in and buries herself in a character no one would expect from her. Rainn Wilson brings a new taste of misery. The kid and star Devin Bronchu puts on a great performance and carries the movie pretty well. The kid is pretty much left to fend for himself after his mother passes away leaving him and his deeply depressed father living with his really absent minded grandmother. He’s bullied at school, he’s angry, he’s scared, and he’s stuck in a living hell. Out of nowhere, he meets Hesher. Hesher is a skinny Jesus-hippy-looking metal head. This 20-something manic just starts hanging around the kid. He pretty much crashes at the kid’s house really unnoticed by anyone else. They just accept him being there. At first it feels like Hesher might be an invisible friend or the kid’s “Tyler Durden” so to speak. He’s not. He’s not at all. That’s not a spoiler, but it’ll save you some time. Natalie Portman is a homely and nerdy chick with her own problems that takes kindness to the kid. He develops a crush on her in the midst of all this drama. Just watch it and enjoy it. The vulgar and bluntness of things may turn PG ears off and the content is depressing at times. It’s a remarkable movie. I’ll even go as far as saying this might be the best movie I’ve seen in 2011 so far. It’s gritty, vulgar, sweet, honest, real, independent, surreal, well directed, well written, and well acted. I recommend this movie to anyone who likes good independent movies and good movies in general. I could compare it to a lot of movies. I could say it’s “this movie meets that movie”, but it’s definitely its own beast. In a few years this movie is going to be a cult favorite. I can almost guarantee this. See it now and avoid the bandwagon. A
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