Re: [Spoiler Alert] Struck by Lightning POST-WATCHING Discussion and Reviews Thread

[Glorfindel]

I have thought of comparing Chris with Johnny Depp as well, or Ewan McGregor. They make some blockbusters, for exposure and money, and then do the movies they want to make themselves.

I was just looking at that Vanity Fair picture and thinking how Chris was beginning to look a bit like Ewan. They have the same chin dimple although Chris' is maybe not quite so noticeable. They could easily play father and son though. Ewan was probably my first 'actor' crush so I'd pay good money to see that.

[fantastica]

movies.com

On a lighter note, just guess what lead me to catch Struck By Lighting? The film stars Glee’s Chris Colfer as Carson Phillips, a high school outcast who doesn’t let his status on the social ladder get him down. Carson doesn’t have the time or energy to waste on his stereotypical peers who are destined to live out their days in their tiny hometown of Clover because Carson has big dreams. Not only is he going to Northwestern University, but he also plans on being the editor of The New Yorker and the youngest freelance journalist to be published in The New York Times, The LA Times and The Chicago Tribune. When he doesn’t hear back from Northwestern, his guidance counselor suggests maybe he needs more, something that’ll make him stand out amongst other aspiring writers who are also likely the head of their school papers.

When not trying to make his dreams come true at school, Carson struggles through a tumultuous home life. His parents’ divorce left his mother (Allison Janney) a drunk and his beloved grandmother (Polly Bergen) can’t even remember who he is. Sure, Carson has it a little rough, but a bolt of lightning is about to change everything.

Typically in film, the school nerd is a pushover. Carson, on the other hand, is rough around the edges. In fact, he’s quite reminiscent of Ezra Miller’s Gonzo in Beware the Gonzo, which debuted at Tribeca back in 2010. Kids at school don’t like Carson and it’d be easy to jump to the same conclusion about him as an audience, but Colfer always keeps Carson’s passion and values at the forefront, and, despite his methods, his efforts are aimed at very noble results. Blackmailing other students into writing for his literary magazine? Sure, blackmailing is wrong, but he’s getting kids to write that otherwise, would never even make the attempt.

Colfer isn’t only deserving of praise for his work bringing Carson to life, but also for creating the character, period. Struck By Lightning has weak spots, but generally Colfer delivers a solid script. It follows all the rules of screenwriting 101, which makes it feel formulaic, but for this type of film that kind of structure is perfect. Colfer developed a movie that’s grounded in all of the all-too-familiar high school clichés, but then added his own spin to it, putting an engaging character at its core and peppering the rest with his own unique flair. In turn, we get the good old fun of school truisms, but also something that feels quite fresh.

Struck By Lightning has so much going for it that it overpowers a potentially devastating technical element – the camerawork. I don’t know what the budget for this film was nor how long the shooting schedule was, but Struck By Lightning looks like it was shot cheap and fast. At first, director Brian Dannelly’s choice to obscure his frame by putting random objects in the foreground and shooting his subjects in wider shots seems like an interesting formula. However, when that style doesn’t change with the material and often contradicts the goals of scenes, it becomes distracting. In fact, sometimes this is taken to such an extreme, you’re made to feel like your hiding in a bush, spying on the characters.

However, if you’re not keeping a keen eye on the camerawork, it’s quite easy to get lost in Struck By Lightning’s assets. The characters are wildly likeable, the jokes are spot on and the film is an all-around good time. Poor cinematography might keep the film as a whole from being great, but it’s still a very worthy watch and certainly suggests Colfer is a filmmaker with immense potential.

[Shinra17]

However, if you’re not keeping a keen eye on the camerawork, it’s quite easy to get lost in Struck By Lightning’s assets. The characters are wildly likeable, the jokes are spot on and the film is an all-around good time. Poor cinematography might keep the film as a whole from being great, but it’s still a very worthy watch and certainly suggests Colfer is a filmmaker with immense potential.

I know I will , this aspect was the part I really didn't enjoy in the trailer but well, not everybody can be Orson Welles and Orson Welles didn't shoot his films in 3 weeks.

[Adamina]

Just finished watching. I teared up at the end The high school parts were good, but it was the adult parts that really got to me. Allison Janney is a master of her art, and I found April interesting because she was sort of the impartial observer (and possibly the most impartial person in the whole movie!). With her being from someplace else (the "Bay Area"), it's almost like she's an angel who's descended from Heaven into Hell to judge people But maybe I'm going too far with the lightning/sky metaphors...

Spoiler:

My one critique is that when the highschoolers besides Carson (and Malerie) had to say stuff that was insightful, it sometimes sounded a bit rote.

All in all, very impressed!

[CloveGlee]

I have just finished watching "Struck by Lightning", the new movie written by and starring Chris Colfer, now available for rent on Amazon and I-Tunes.

I would like to start this review by making a confession. If you look through the archive of this blog, you may find that there is no review or any kind of commentary for Chris' first children's book, Land of Stories. There's a reason for that. I didn't really care for it all that much and didn't feel like broadcasting that piece of information. I mention it now only because I want to make this absolutely clear: I am not about to give Struck By Lightning the praise that is coming because I'm a Chris Colfer fan. I do not necessarily love everything he does. But I will tell you, very honestly, that this funny, quirky, wise and ultimately very bittersweet movie is without question the best work he's ever done.

Move over, Kurt Hummel. Carson Phillips is now the shining star of Chris Colfer's career, for one dazzling and painful reason. The writing for Struck by Lightning is much, MUCH better than it is for Glee. More at the blog.

http://recappersdelight.blogspot.com/2012/12/movie-review-struck-by-lightning.html

[Divalicious]

Just finished watching SBL and I am crying. Chris wrote a very tight, true to life movie. I see people like his Mom at the hospital, and I've certainly met the ultra-selfish people like his father. I see the Alzheimer patients that are so emotionally labile and you just don't know where you are with them. I also see people handed things, and know I have to fight for anything. We all want life to be "fair" and sometimes it just isn't.

Carson was a pain in the ass, but you knew why he was a pain in the ass. He just wanted to fight and get out of this town that everyone else seemed to settle for, and I rooted for him. I cry because the one person who fought their destiny is the one who got to die.

I was glad that his no-longer-stepmother-to-be seemed to realize that the same excuses that his father said to her were the same ones he said to his son, and realized her child would be getting the same treatment. She didn't sit by him, but she did honor Carson. It was also telling that the kids at the end were looking for Carson to argue about their leopard print plan, and then decide that they could do better.

I am sure I am also crying because I love Chris, and he just portrayed a character that died, but not just because of that. He was Carson, just like on Glee he is Kurt. I can't wait to see Chris do another role, because everyone in this movie just embodied their part.

I am so proud of him.

[tanita_mors]

Ok, i just finished the movie 2 minutes ago. I haven't read any of you guys reviwes because I didn't want my opinion of the movie to be colored by others.

First of, the last 10 minutes or so are unbelievably emotional and resonate like crazy. Frankly, I didn't think it would make me tear up and by the end of it, i wasn't sobbing (that is a rarity, when watching movies - the last time it happened was when i was watching that akita movie with richard geree - my mom though i was crazy), but my eyes were fild with tears.

Yes, the movie isn't perfect. Some of the camera work is very weird to me. The script was very strong, abate preachy at times. the only moments in the movie that felt forced to me were some of carson's temper tantrums and smart ass remarks. Every other scene with either carson and his mom, his mom alone, his parents,carson and grandma, carson and the school councilor, his mom and the fiance, carson and his class mates was almost perfect and as true to life as any movie can be. some of those tantrums very over the top for me, but the one with his mom after finding out what she did was so realistic - i had almost exact arguments with my mom (and no, she didn't hide my acceptance letter, but we did and still fight about collage and it always looks and sound like that).

the movie would have been better if it was a little less preachy by carson, because he does come of rather unlikable in the first half of the movie, but by the end, when you see the clear shock and disconfert in the eyes of his classmates, particularly at the meeting where they look at his empty chair, you know why it was all worth it.

all in all, a very solid start for chris, particularity given that this whole movie was his baby.

[Ranwing]

Have finally been able to watch SBL, and I have to applaud Chris both as an actor and as a writer. I ended up sitting through the movie twice so far because the first time around I was paying more attention to the flow of the storyline and the script than I was actually watching the performance. As a writer myself, I wanted to really get a sense of where Chris stood as a storyteller and I found him to be one of the braver storytellers than I've seen in a long time. It's not easy to allow characters that we're supposed to be sympathetic towards be totally assholes at times, but he let the less pleasent sides of their personalities come out. He didn't gloss over or sugarcoat those less pleasent parts. And just because all these characters were doing awful things didn't stop me from sympathizing with them. I think that the only character that he let be a complete tool without any redeeming qualities was Carson's father, and I was perfectly okay with that. But even those I hated Carson's father for spending years denying that he even had a son and apparently being totally absent from Carson's life, that moment when he learned that his son was dead and you saw in his face that he realized just what he so carelessly and selfishly discarded broke my heart.

The pacing of the story was crisp and flowed well. And I absolutely loved the dialogue. Carson's quips and one-liners and insults seemed to come from an organic place in the character and not just tossed in for the sake of having witty dialogue. That's not an easy thing to accomplish and comes from a place of real sensativity from Chris as a storyteller. He understood all these characters and was able to write in a way that told their stories as much as Carson's. And I absolutely loved the message that the film was sending - the importance of having dreams and aspirations, even if you don't manage to achieve any of them, is important. It's having those dreams that drive you and push you through life and without having something to work towards, you just stagnate and die. That's such an important thing that it's the striving that give meaning and not necessarily achieving. It takes away the stigma of being a failure because you put all your being into fighting for your goals.

Now... the acting. Stellar, across the board. And I don't use use that compliment lightly. Allison Janney was amazing as Carson's mom and I adored Polly Bergan. Her relationship with Carson broke my heart because I went through that with my great-grandmother before she passed. Not being recognized after you were so close all your life is one of the most devestating feelings and that moment during Carson's funeral when she place the scarf-blanket she'd knit on his casket had me bawling. And Chris... no one will ever be able to acuse him of only being able to "play himself" again. It was a nuanced and mature performance that lent his character a dignity and maturity that none of the adults around him had.

An excellent outing for Chris in his first major film project outside of Glee and if this is what he's capable of at 22 years old, it's going to be amazing to consider what he'll come up with as he continues to mature.

[arina]

I think the over the top tantrums were probably the only things that bothered me about the movie… the first tanturm - I think that it was maybe too close to home for Chris and he put there alot of things he wanted to actually say to his peers in his real highschool but because we didn’t see that much of Carsons interaction with students, we didn’t see that much of them stabing him… well we saw some but he was equally terrible at them, acted superiour and insulted them as well since the beginning of the movie, so it did not had the impact it was supposed to have and it seemed really exaggerated. And in this scene I did not sympatize with him as I should, unlike the scenes with his grandma, scenes with mother (paricularly the "letter" one) etc where I really felt for him.

I liked the movie a lot of more than I thought I would. I am very different from Carson and not exactly one of the overachieving peple the book is for. I also read the parts of script that leaked and while I really enjoyed some parts, I found the Claire’s funeral speech about Carson going there to get education but ending up teaching them how to be themselves instead and that she learnt from from him more than from anyone, and the flasbacks to Carsons inspirational advices to his peers too much and I was really positively surprised this scenes weren’t in the movie in the end. The final scene with the students looking at his chair and deciding to come with better idea was much better way to show he had impact on them. That scene was brilliant.

The characters were all interesting – especially, Carson, Malerie and the adults and they all were really great acted. The movie could no have a better cast. It was really interesting to see Chris in different role and I really didn’t think about Kurt no even once, he was really totally different.

And agreed with Ranwing I also loved the message of importace of dreams even when you don’t achieve them. And the fact that Carson was strucked by lightning in the moment when he realized that, when he was finally happy… so sad

The dialogs were great and seem very natural, especially the adults ones and it was almost hard to believe they came from twenty years old boy.

I laughed and I was close to tears couple of times. Overall I think it was the great movie, the strong script and if Chris learns to be more subtle with his preachines it would be absolutely amazing.

[sahhar]

I think everyone here has summed up their thoughts about the film really well, and I heartily agree with everyone. I watched the film on iTunes purely as a film and without any bias, and even though my computer was acting stupid, and I had to keep refreshing and pausing the film, because it kept getting stuck, I thoroughly enjoyed every single bit of it. The film as funny, moving, entertaining, sad, tons of emotions came over me as I watched it. I can't stress how perfectly the film was cast. Every single person did a bang on job of playing their characters and Chris just simply blew me away. Any comparisons with Kurt are just as pointless as comparing Carson with Chris. He's a unique character all by himself and Chris played him with such amazing nuances and mannerisms, he made Carson a character I'll always remember him as, to the point where whenever I see Chris or Kurt it throws me off at how all three people are the same person.
The film kept my attention throughout and I still can't believe a 22 year old wrote this film, such a poignant, witty, deep script, whilst making every character more human than caricaturish. I cried so much at the end, which is a testament to how well written and made this film is because I never cry in films or TV at the drop of a hat, it takes a lot for me to break.
To sum up, I'm so happy Chris was able to bring this script of his to life, it's a film I really hope gets the due that it deserves, and that's why I made an effort to make and iTunes account and rent the film so that it gets money, and I really hope it gets a wide release as possible so that as many people as possible can experience it. What can I say, I'm really proud to be a Chris Colfer fan today, I always am, but today more than ever .

P.S- Off topic, but I only get more and more upset with how Chris is stuck with a show like Glee when he is capable of so much more greatness than the now-pathetic show lets him do.

[Catt24]

Since I was very fortunate to see this film in Tribeca, I had another great fortune this past weekend (along with the chaotic last minute X-mass shopping) to watch this film with my husband on VOD Friday night.

My husband does NOT like Glee at all (can't wait for it to get off the air), did not care for Kurt in the beginning of the season, and really does not like Ryan Murphy at all (solely based on Nip/Tuck). However, from the Piers Morgan interview and the whole NY Festival experience, he does like Chris Colfer. Anyways, he enjoyed the film, which is kinda rare for him since he's more into reading the latest statistical textbook than he is watching tv/films (he doesn't even like the tv on when he's home). Yet, he was also impressed with the fact that this was Chris's first screenplay, and he thought that Chris was "more aware" of how life works than most people. Without really knowing Chris's background all that well, he did think this film was a way to work out his [Chris's] issues of what he went through in high school. He loved Allison Janney in the role, and the message of having goals and a drive to get one through life since it resonates with him in his pursuit of PhD in Statistics.

So thumbs up from hubby (and me as well)

[opals]

I'll just chime in to say that my hubby, who hates Glee with a white hot passion from hell, found this movie to be "quite watchable". He swore he was just going to surf the internet while I watched On Demand, but he apparrently he got sucked in, since he sat and watched the whole thing with me. I even caught him laughing out loud and commenting on various characters on several occasions.

[ChrisColferFan1]

I am not got a writing reviews, but just saw the movie On Demand. I enjoyed it, One of the best recent movies I have seen in a long time. I agree with alot of reviews already posted. I plan on watching at least once more ON Demand and buy it when it comes out on DVD.

[Glorfindel]

That's funny: finding 2 posts about husbands watching SBL, just when I wanted to 'report' that I watched SBL with my husband last night too.

My husband doesn't like Glee either (and hates RM). He likes Kurt, and really gets why I'm a fan of Chris (he likes Chris' quotes and insights a lot), but he would not watch a movie solely for Chris. He liked reading TLoS but hasn't read the Carson Phillips journal yet. He doesn't like most mainstream movies and is more interested in the 'small, real life' movies, which move him and make him think (e.g. 'Good Will Hunting' and 'Pay It Forward'). SBL fits his interests very well.
I was very interested in hearing his opinion on SBL, as he is not a fan and more GA (although as said: he has a more 'philosophical' taste in movies than the GA).

My husband thought that SBL was one of the better movies he saw this year, and coming from him that is a great compliment. He was a bit sad that he was spoiled by me of the outcome of Carson's mom and the acceptance letter of North Western, as he found that the impact would have been better had he not known. But it moved him nonetheless.
He was very impressed by all the stories. Carson's mother's story (of course) and the scenes with his grandmother touched him the most. The high school stuff mostly made him laugh, although he also was a driven (and misunderstood) kid once and he got Carson's drive really well. He pitied Carson, and never found him a brat or unlikeable.

And one of the first things my husband said when we started watching was that Chris "didn't move like Kurt at all". He was very impressed by Chris' acting and that Carson was so different from Kurt.

[Delight]

I'm happy to hear that quite a few non-Chris fans had found SBL enjoyable to watch

I wish could say the same for my brother (who doesn't like Glee or Kurt) who I cajoled into watching the movie too. He thought the movie was good, but less impressive than 'Perks of being a wallflower' (though I'm uncertain as to why he's comparing the two movies). The lines he finds funny in the movie are: 'I thought I was calm and mature for my age', 'It was easier to roofie you than answer your questions' and 'spread that shit like nutella'. His comments about Carson and his mom were 'angry brat' and 'bitch', respectively

Buuuut, that's enough of my unappreciative brother for now

There is a scene in the movie which made me take notice of the camera work (and not in a good way). It's the scene where Carson's dad was being told that he couldn't re-marry because he's technically still married and even has a son from his first marriage. It's like, I want to see how Christina's character is reacting to this shocking information, but all I get to see is the dead beat dad. I kept thinking, 'pan that camera across to Christina!'

Ah, as for my general thoughts about the movie, I find that I enjoy the scenes with the adults more than those in high school. One weakness of the movie I noticed, which had been voiced in some of the reviews, is that the other students blackmailed by Carson don't get fleshed out sufficiently in the movie (Reading the book definitely helped in this aspect).

The only part of the movie where I ended up crying wasn't the scene where Carson died, but the scene where Carson's mom kept dialing Carson's mobile phone. She's such a horrible mother towards her son and yet, her denial and emotional breakdown in that scene made you sympathize with her, and share her pain.

Of course, to be able to watch something with so much Chris in it is enjoyable (Especially after having to content myself with the measly crumbs of Kurt scenes on Glee for so long). Carson has quite a few angry outbursts at the students he blackmails in the movie, which can come across as unwarranted to some degree (because you don't actually see much bullying of Carson by his peers).

I was expecting more from Rebel, based on the feedback I've read about her performance, but aside from being mildly amused by her character, she didn't really make much of an impact on me. I have a feeling this has something to do with the trailer spoiling all her best lines...

[tanita_mors]

The only part of the movie where I ended up crying wasn't the scene where Carson died, but the scene where Carson's mom kept dialing Carson's mobile phone. She's such a horrible mother towards her son and yet, her denial and emotional breakdown in that scene made you sympathize with her, and share her pain.

This was me as well. That was the moment when the tears started to come.

And yes, Rebel was strangely very muted in this role.

I love the fact that the kids called themselves cliches in one scene and we see their attempts to overcome it in that final meeting scene after carson's death.

As for Carson, all I can tell you is that kid would be hated in my school as well and probably by me too. There is ambition and that is a good thing, yes, but his approach was all wrong. He is so abrasive. No regard for feelings of others. The bullying or ignoring must have been so intense that it de-sentisised him to his classmates. And I find it a bit hard to believe that a student can talk like that to the faculty and not get some kind of punishment. But I like that Chris didn't run away from making his story's hero unlikable and polarizing.

I think that the turning point in the movie for me with Carson's character was when he had his heart to heart with Clair (the cheerleader). They discussed their dreams when they were kids and his utter dismay at looking all those dreams disappear for many of his classmates without even trying. It's the basic difference between him and everyone else. He wasn't going to let his dream die like theirs did and that is why he couldn't understand them. He just couldn't see their perspective until the very end and when he did it was over.

[Glorfindel]

The only time I really teared up was when Carson's grandma put the 'scarf-blanket' on the coffin.
Oh, and when Carson hit the 'Clover' sign and then started crying.

I expected more from Rebel too, tbh, but I did find her scenes with Chris very touching, especially the first one when Carson tried to explain what (writing) inspiration feels like. And the "Carson, are we friends?" scene of course.

[arina]

I didn't cry but was close to tear in scenes you already mentioned - Carson hitting the Clover sign, gradma putting the "scarf-blanket" on the coffin and mom kept dialing Carson's mobile phone, and I think I would probably really cry during the mobile phone dialing scene If I was not ready for it, because it was released in advance. But yeah, the last part of the movie was really emotional for me including the students looking at Carson's chair.

And when the closing edits started and I realized that I finally saw SBL, Chris's first film and it was really good and start really thinking about that allI felt probably the most emotional :-)

[Glorfindel]

I didn't cry but was close to tear in scenes you already mentioned - Carson hitting the Clover sign, gradma putting the "scarf-blanket" on the coffin and mom kept dialing Carson's mobile phone, and I think I would probably really cry during the mobile phone dialing scene If I was not ready for it, because it was released in advance. But yeah, the last part of the movie was really emotional for me including the students looking at Carson's chair.

Agreed, that empty chair scene was just perfect, not too sappy or dramatic, just a simple look from the other students and then the realization that they could come up with something better.
And I also agree on the mom dialing scene: if that scene hadn't been released earlier I probably would have cried then too.

And when the closing edits started and I realized that I finally saw SBL, Chris's first film and it was really good and start really thinking about that allI felt probably the most emotional :-)

This.

I'm so, so proud and happy for him.

And I guess Robert Aguire feels the same way. This is how he answered a question about what was his favorite moment of filming SBL:

It was probably the moment we wrapped. Chris was doing this special effects shot where he had to be in a pool and he walked out soaking wet. He’s walking out, dripping out of this pool, and everybody just started clapping. And I walked up to him and gave him a big hug, and it was this moment of ‘We did it, we made your dream happen, and it was amazing.’ That was really special for me.

x

[tanita_mors]

that is why girls, i had some semblance of self control and didn't watch a single clip or preview from SBL before time. It was all (besides the scenes in the trailer), 100 % fresh and new. the truest experience of any movie is when you watch it for the first time. some famous director who's name escapes me said that his one wish in life would be to watch his favorite movie in a cinema for the first time again. to experience that unique wonder.

that is why i hate that glee gets spoiled so much. i think that is in part the reason why the viewing pleasure for most of us has diminished greatly.

[Divalicious]

I was lucky and didn't spoil myself too much, other than the released clip that had him hitting the Clover sign, and I knew the Mom ruined his efforts to get into NorthWestern, I didn't know a lot of the other things. Again, I cried at the ending, not because he died, because I was prepared for that, but because the one person who actually tried to get out of that small minded town was the person who died. I cried because he tried so very hard, and didn't give up, and while life isn't fair, I wanted it to be fair for this kid. I understood Carson's anger, and didn't care about his diatribes. He had spent 17 years probably being told by his alcoholic Mom she should have aborted him, seeing parents argue, and then have his father leave, and then wanting more for himself when his fellow school mates were happy with lives recounting their high school days. They were happy for the status quo, because they were on the top tier, they didn't care about the people beneath them. You reach a point where you are simply done, and you can't get past that anger until you leave that place, metaphorically or literally. Carson actually did get emotionally past it at the end, and was happy for the first time in his life, and would have been amazingly successful, because he wasn't ever going to settle for less than his dreams. Another reason to cry, at the lost dreams.

[valkeakuulas]

Just finished watching the film and I'm still wearing my thinking cap and might not have coherent opinions. For me it was definately wrong choice to read the book first because I had all these images of what will happen ready in my head, which were then interpeted differently in the movie or not addressed at all.

I did love the film and found the family dynamic of the Phillips' awful and interesting at the same time. I don't know if I'm somehow jaded or cynical person myself but I didn't find Carson at all selfish or a big asshole in this movie. He was perhaps a little too old for his age, which often does happens to only children, and his passion to achive pulled the age and the attitude up a notch. What is wrong with trying to advance in life and hate those who only for apparences sake do not live the life they want or desire to have and on top of that dispise the ones that try to think outside of the box?

Also the movie did have some of that small town vibe in it which I loved, but that side of the story could have been discribed more. We know there is apprently only one pharmacy and probably also one high school but that was all we were told. The movie was quite short and lacked more minutes. I was positively suprised how many scenes Janney and Hendricks really had together. Poignant and well created scenes in this dull and colorless pharmacy and Sheryl dressed in her dirty t-shirts and college pants, you really get glimpes of why Carson was so adamant about leaving but also why Sheryl didn't want this one living thing in her life to leave her... oh dear.

One thing I would have changed was the choppiness: we were thrown from scene to scene really quickly and haphazardly. It sometimes took awhile to catch up with what was going on. And it's probably a budget issue to keep the scenes short without close ups and many camera angles but for some reason I was missing those, especially in the mother/son discussion outside the assisted home one. We all know both Chris and Allison can deliever and act also in extreme close ups and emote some much with their faces and that those long shots were lacking something. Perhaps that was creating this depressing and panicky feeling inside me. Aaaand because the revelation of Sheryl's betrayal was so well written in the book I compared the two together which is a mistake on my part.

So in general: the story was interesting and one of a kind, what I was personally missing was more, more, more. I wanted more time to watch and see the scenes play out (If that makes any sense.) I don't think there were any single scenes that lasted more than, say three minutes. Perhaps it was comedy structure in a more dramatic film? I don't know, I'm not a critic. Will definately watch again and think about it for awhile. Alison Janney does need some sort of recognition for her portrayal of this unfortunate and crazy alcoholic lady.

[fantastica]

i agree that reading the book would "ruine" the experience of movie watching. the best thing to do is watch the movie first. or read the book first and make your own movies in your head.

[coxfire]

I finally menaged to watch SBL and I must say I really enjoyed it. It was a very nice little movie, and Chris' script was fresh and very witty.

Unfortunately, I too felt that the movie was too short, and that it sometimes suffered from its independant status, particularly in some of the camera work. In some scenes, I felt like we were missing reaction shots, or simply transitions inbetween scenes.

I read reviews stating that Carson was a jerk, but I feel that part of these comments were derived from the fact that when we get to the story, Carson already hates everyone/is hated by everyone, and we don't really get to see what brought him to this mindset. Carson just talks of being bullied and we don't see it (though I didn't mind not seeing it), and maybe that's why some of the audience didn't get why he was so rough and blunt with his piers.

I agree with some critics who said that Carson's classmates were not developped enough, and feel that it's also one of the reason the movie felt so short to me. Particularly, I feel like we could have had more insight into what they had finally written for the magazine, and how they realized what it meant for them to finally express themselves in a way, since, in the end, it's Carson's biggest victory and acomplishement and what makes him happy right before he is struck by lightning.

Generally speaking, Chris did an awesome job at depicting a very dysfunctional family and Carson's general loneliness. This guy had litterally no one to rely on or to confide in, between a runaway Dad, a senile Grandma and of course his Mum, too wrapped up in her own self pity to support him. In that sense, watching Carson's family life, you can understand his desire to get out of Clover and finally be fully who he is without being judged or put down. Carson's drive and strength to never backdown for anyone was truly great to watch, for so many times people just deny who they are to conform with society's standards.

All the parts with the adults and Carson's family were stellar, wether it was in their interactions or dialogue or simply the acting. The interactions between Carson's mum and his dad's new wife were very good, and Allison and Christina acted the hell out of them.

As for Chris, well if there is any proof that he is not just "Kurt hummel from Glee", well here it is. Yes, the High School setting and the age of his character are the same as in Glee, but Carson has noting to do with Kurt: his voice, his posture, his demeanor, his attitude were nothing like Kurt's (except maybe in some instances in Season 1, where Kurt would be extra-snarky and a tad bitchy, which I miss). Carson was abarasive, never let anyone walk over himself, threw tantrums (and YES, I finally got to see Chris play someone pissed and ACTUALLY YELL, since he's never allowed to do that on Glee), and very shown very seldom moments of kindness (with his Grandma and Malerie).

Chris was great in all his comedic scenes, but I must recognize that he definitely excels in drama, and I get why Glee writers would overuse it. I think one of the scenes that got me the most was the one where Carson just learned that he was accepted to NW but somehow didn't receive the letter, and he tells to the counselor, without even looking at her, that he never saw the ocean. In this instance, he totally conveyed just how crushed he was by these news and that, at this moment, nothing matters for his life was ended.

So, this is getting long so I'll stop there, but all in all, it was a nice movie, with an impressive script for a guy so young, but that suffered a bit from its low budget and the little amount of time available to do it.

[arina]

I haven't read much of SBL reviews because I just don't want to read something overly negative but I've just read Brian Dannelly twitter and he has there few links for very nice SBL reviews. So if someone like to read Chris's praising, you can read those reviews :-)

http://www.theyoungfolks.com/review/movie-pick-of-the-week-struck-by-lightning-2012/15177
http://www.smalltowncritic.com/2012/12/27/struck-by-lightning-review/
http://stagemommusings.com/2012/12/27/angst-on-demand/

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