Mean Creek

It's the premise of revenge on a school bully that starts this film off. A group of friends decide to take revenge on George, the fat bully of their high-school. Their plan is to lure him on a birthday river boating trip, get him to strip off his clothes and force him to run home naked. Things don't go to plan and the revenge on George turns out to be, however accidental, much more sinister.

It might not sound like it but this film is devoid of stereotypes; even the bully character has depth and individuality in his character, being really a lonely kid searching for friendship. The majority of the cast are children, but this is one of the best collections of child actors seen in a film, each is brilliant as their character. Each character also is rich in individuality and a delight to watch; the script of Mean Creak won the Nicholl Fellowship award back in 1998.

This is another one of those coming of age films, which rarely have any relevance to most people, but this one is a good enough story in its own right to be about any age group of people. The problems of the characters in this film are truly real, and acted brilliantly, making this film a very satisfying tale.

Well worth seeing.

Parker Bic