Charlie Bartlett (2007)

Plot of Charlie Bartlett

A look at the life of a kid that becomes the class psychiatrist.

Review of Charlie Bartlett

Charlie just wants to fit in, that's all. But having been raised in a wealthy family and having gone to private schools his whole life, it's no surprise that he has problems when he has to go to public school. When the family doctor prescribes Ritalin needlessly, Charlie sells them and instantly becomes the man to know. This somehow leads to him becoming the school 'shrink'. Now in real life I think he would just become a straight up dealer, but Yelchin's Bartlett is a nice enough kid that it might happen. And then the inevitable fall comes and Charlie must redeem himself, butit seems to get harder at every turn.
 

The main reason I wanted to see Charlie Bartlett was because of Anton Yelchin's performance in Alpha Dog. The boy was phenomenal (except for his singing), and he was only upstaged by a surprisingly good performance by Justin Timberlake, and is instantly likable in this as well. As we all know, Robert Downey Jr. may not be the best person to portray a person of authority, especially a principal, but he is pretty much believable, if unconventional. Kat Dennings is interesting here. I really like her and she does admirably in Charlie Bartlett, but I can't really see her as a leading lady. Great as a love interest, but I don't think she could carry a film all by herself. After those individual observations, I must say that the chemistry between all of the cast works remarkably well.
 

Special Features include two commentaries, one with the director and writer, and one with the director and Anton Yelchin and Kat Dennings. There isn't much besides those, just a music video and a strange little thing called 'Restroom Confessional', which seems to be the cast and crew adlibbing confessions like in the movie. Not much here, but it's not a big budget, effects laden film that deserves a ton of features, but a making of would have been nice.
 

In the end, Charlie Bartlett is the story of a reluctant hero who must take responsibility for his action and become the real hero that everyone thinks he is. Do I recommend it? Yes I do. Why? Because it's an entertaining movie with a cast that really works together and has just enough of a serious undercurrent to keep it slightly grounded in semi-reality.
 

If they ever decide to remake Ferris Bueller's Day Off (Please don't!), they could do worse than casting Anton Yelchin as Ferris.
 

Keep reading,
 

Mitch E
mitchemerson@hotmail.com

The Cast

Director

Writers

Anton Yelchin

Charlie Bartlett

Jon Poll

Gustin Nash

Robert Downey Jr.

Principal Nathan Gardner

Hope Davis

Marilyn Bartlett

Kat Dennings

Susan Gardner

Tyler Hilton

Murphey Bivens

Rating

Length

Company

Release Date

R

97 mins.

Sidney Kimmel Ent.

Feb. 22, 2008

Related Links

IMDb.com

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This review was written by Mitch E. Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved.