Class Rank

source: Class Rank

As ever, no spoilers here but the basic premise is of hyper-geeky Bernard (Skyler Gisondo) and over-achiever Veronica (Olivia Holt). She has her eyes set on Yale and higher but this appears stymied when she only achieves a class rank of second, instead of first. Shenanigans then ensue when she realises Bernard may be able to help her if she in turn helps him with his campaign to replace French with Chinese on the school curriculum. This may all seem very generic and, looking at the bald words, it is. If this were another rites-of-passage movie, many high jinks would line up to be ticked off, all present and correct. But Class Rank doesn't do that. Instead, it does a deep dive into the characters of Veronica and Bernard, one that drags your heart along with it. Even as you laugh at the undeniably funny lines they trade, you know you're not laughing at them in a cruel way. When Bernard asks, "Surely the melting of your dairy products is not more important than the future education of your child?" I giggled but he's actually right. Like most of us geeks, both kids are well aware they're out of step without it being simplified into your classic 'jocks versus geeks' or other high school comedy cliches. Filling out their world is an ensemble of characters who are equally real even if they get much shorter screen time. No character is under-written or unimportant here. The gentle banter between Bernard's Grandpa (Bruce Dern) and the editor of the local paper (Kathleen Chalfant) is sweet without ever being that special ageist sickly of 'oooh, look, old people holding hands, aww!' Veronica's Mom (Kristin Chenoweth) is similarly un-caricatured and, again, I forgot she was acting... she was just her Mom in a tender and loving way. Then there's Nick Krause's effortless grace as the shop bagger, Mike, watch out for him. I'm not kidding when I say the final scene with him made my eyes sting. Damn this hayfever. Let me also take this paragraph to congratulate this film on having A GREAT SOUNDTRACK. In this respect, it's the antithesis of most current Hollywood in that there's space and beats and it never intrudes or de-stabilises, it supports and helps tell the story. Y'know, like scores are meant to do. Well done, Brian Byrne. In a cinematic world overflowing with the same overbearing martial beats and monotonous pitchbent braaaaams, his score is a cold glass of water in a bloody desert. It's the final act of the film that left me stunned enough that I'm writing this review. When the complications happen, Holt and Gisondo are stunning, I was on the edge of my seat. There is such rawness and honesty here that it hurts, built as it is on how we've come to know and love both characters during the film. Nothing is overdone, everything makes emotional sense. It's so rare to see scenes like this in film and even more amazing when you realise the actors were nineteen or twenty when they filmed them. These two played keepy uppy with my heart and I'm a cynical, fat old man. Be forewarned! Finally, I have to praise writer Benjamin August and director Eric Stoltz for a brilliant story perfectly delivered. This film could have settled with being farcical, it could have been throwaway, it could have been silly. Instead, there is such heart and candour here, about love, friendship about the human condition at every age. As soon as the credits finished, I started writing this review and re-started the film from the beginning. I'm enjoying it even more second time around. Thank you for giving me this wonderful, perfect gem of a film. It's now one of my favourite films about love. I know I'll be watching it again many times in the future.

A highbrow teen comedy about overachievers for overachievers. This film should have been shown amongst the most intellectual teenagers in high school who should run for the local school board.

It's a light and amazing drama romance film. I highly recommend this.

This film reminds me a lot of the Great Gatsby, between its intertwined romantic affair between love and society and the undying thirst for wanting to be at the center of attention.When I first watched this film I thought it was gonna be another spin on a high school rom-com but it turned into much more than that. Both characters have their own agenda but become intertwined when fate comes into play and fall in love. However, this is not what I got from the movie. When the "Bollywood" students were putting in their input, I saw it as the american people commenting on people who are successful today. They constantly criticize and generate ideas to belittle their achievements or emphasize their failures. But in the end they are jealous because they stood on the sidelines and were just there for commentary. Moreover, this film made me realize that the American Dream is alive but people do not want to see it until its to late because its easier and a stable life to live on the sidelines.

Quirky and at times cheesy, but it is absolutely darling and fun. I wasn't expecting much, and to be honest I don't even know why I clicked on it, but I'm glad I did :)

I wish I knew how to contact Stoltz and August for giving us this wholesome, refreshing, and beautiful movie. Hopefully there will be more like it. Love it.

I went into this movie without high expectations and got a nice 100 minutes of entertainment, enough that I went back for seconds and watched it again. A reviewer described the two leads in this as quirky to which I have to say I totally agree, although the boy is the more quirky of the two. For most of the movie I really liked the girl, then didn't like her, then liked her again. The boy was always likeable from start to finish and he reminded me very much of Napolean Dynamite. Bruce Dern and Kathleen Chalfant's characters for me were the hit, they stole all the scenes they were in. Bruce Dern still has it, as if he ever lost it, he had my laughing on more than one occasion. I loved his comment about Lithuania near the end of the movie. Eric Stoltz did a pretty good job directing this movie and I did not even recognise him in the movie first time round. A movie I would definitely recommend if you like rom coms.

I thought this was a good movie. Although teens were used as the main cast, I think this appeals to all ages. The comedy was dry but great to me, witty even. If someone is not into movies or more into an outlandish comedy I don't they would enjoy it. However, if you don't mind paying a little attention to plots and dialogue, or using a little imagination, you will enjoy this delightful movie. Eric stoltz did an excellent job. I didn't know he directed movies. I look forward to his future films. Whether you watch with your significant other or on your own it should be entertaining.

I love the career trajectory of Olivia Holt. She is starring in her second film and it is just right for her. Her character is a self centered, driven young woman with her eye on becoming a Supreme Court justice. Enter Bernie, the perfect dupe for her, a quirky loner without a clue. It's teen romance movie magic. Eric Stoltz does a great job of showcasing Skylar Gisando as Bernie without forgetting who the real star is. Too bad it will never reach the audience it deserves.

Okay so I actually made an IMDB to review this movie. It empowered me so to speak.. First I wanna say this is a cute quirky rom-com that's set in a highschool with teen leads but honestly it's so much more than that!! Because through the film you get to understand what it means to make a difference and shows us our selfish side and what meaning we put in our lives. It also felt more real than many other highschool type movies and I love it for that. I'd say this is definitely a favorite movie I've seen recently. At first I didn't know what I got into...but soon you fall in love with the quirky characters and I hope there will be more movies like this to come!