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Robert Abele of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote that: "Durst's direction is overly earnest, heavy in long takes, atmosphere wise but scene foolish."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-et-charliebanks27-2009mar27,0,7624217.story|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Abele|first=Robert|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090329215324/http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-et-charliebanks27-2009mar27,0,7624217.story|archive-date=March 29, 2009|url-status=dead}} {{Rating|2|5}}</ref> Joe Neumaier of the ''[[New York Daily News]]'' praised Eisenberg for giving a "nicely understated performance" as an "endearing everyman" but felt that Ritter "doesn't have the necessary air of danger the script requires" in his role.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/03/26/2009-03-26_short_takes_cindy_sherman_charlie_banks_.html|title=Short takes: 'Cindy Sherman,' 'Charlie Banks,' 'American Swing'|last1=Neumaier|first1=Joe|last2=Weitzman|first2=Elizabeth|newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822081814/https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/03/26/2009-03-26_short_takes_cindy_sherman_charlie_banks_.html|archive-date=August 22, 2009|url-status=dead}} {{Rating|2|5}}</ref> [[Kyle Smith (critic)|Kyle Smith]] of the ''[[New York Post]]'' criticized the film's characters for being nothing but a "writer's creation" that deliver "flat and unconvincing" dialogue in an "improbable" story, but gave credit to Ritter for having "the charisma of a young [[Val Kilmer]]" and Durst for showing "a few stylistic touches that indicate he may have better films in him."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://nypost.com/2009/03/27/the-education-of-charlie-banks/|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Smith|first=Kyle|author-link=Kyle Smith (critic)|newspaper=[[New York Post]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026183527/https://nypost.com/2009/03/27/the-education-of-charlie-banks/|archive-date=October 26, 2020|url-status=live}} {{Rating|1.5|4}}</ref> Norman Wilner of ''[[Now (newspaper)|NOW]]'' felt that Durst delivered "an overwhelmingly safe movie", criticizing Elkoff's script for having "simple dramatic constructions" and "measured steps" in its plot, and Eisenberg for giving a "blandly conceived version" of the characters he usually portrays, concluding that: "He does the required stammering and shrugging, but it's a tossed-off turn in a movie that’s similarly on autopilot."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://nowtoronto.com/movies/reviews/the-education-of-charlie-banks|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Wilner|first=Norman|newspaper=[[Now (newspaper)|NOW]]|date=April 14, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021}}</ref>
Robert Abele of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote that: "Durst's direction is overly earnest, heavy in long takes, atmosphere wise but scene foolish."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-et-charliebanks27-2009mar27,0,7624217.story|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Abele|first=Robert|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090329215324/http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-et-charliebanks27-2009mar27,0,7624217.story|archive-date=March 29, 2009|url-status=dead}} {{Rating|2|5}}</ref> Joe Neumaier of the ''[[New York Daily News]]'' praised Eisenberg for giving a "nicely understated performance" as an "endearing everyman" but felt that Ritter "doesn't have the necessary air of danger the script requires" in his role.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/03/26/2009-03-26_short_takes_cindy_sherman_charlie_banks_.html|title=Short takes: 'Cindy Sherman,' 'Charlie Banks,' 'American Swing'|last1=Neumaier|first1=Joe|last2=Weitzman|first2=Elizabeth|newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822081814/https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/03/26/2009-03-26_short_takes_cindy_sherman_charlie_banks_.html|archive-date=August 22, 2009|url-status=dead}} {{Rating|2|5}}</ref> [[Kyle Smith (critic)|Kyle Smith]] of the ''[[New York Post]]'' criticized the film's characters for being nothing but a "writer's creation" that deliver "flat and unconvincing" dialogue in an "improbable" story, but gave credit to Ritter for having "the charisma of a young [[Val Kilmer]]" and Durst for showing "a few stylistic touches that indicate he may have better films in him."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://nypost.com/2009/03/27/the-education-of-charlie-banks/|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Smith|first=Kyle|author-link=Kyle Smith (critic)|newspaper=[[New York Post]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026183527/https://nypost.com/2009/03/27/the-education-of-charlie-banks/|archive-date=October 26, 2020|url-status=live}} {{Rating|1.5|4}}</ref> Norman Wilner of ''[[Now (newspaper)|NOW]]'' felt that Durst delivered "an overwhelmingly safe movie", criticizing Elkoff's script for having "simple dramatic constructions" and "measured steps" in its plot, and Eisenberg for giving a "blandly conceived version" of the characters he usually portrays, concluding that: "He does the required stammering and shrugging, but it's a tossed-off turn in a movie that’s similarly on autopilot."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://nowtoronto.com/movies/reviews/the-education-of-charlie-banks|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Wilner|first=Norman|newspaper=[[Now (newspaper)|NOW]]|date=April 14, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021}}</ref>


Jeannette Catsoulis of ''[[The New York Times]]'' praised the film for Durst's detail-oriented direction in capturing the early '80s, and the "sincere performances (most notably from Mr. Ritter and Eva Amurri as Charlie's upper-crust crush) and clever writing" for keeping it from being "maudlin" and tell "a prickly examination of the sturdiness of class boundaries and the illusion of inclusion."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/movies/27banks.html|title=Probing Class Consciousness|last=Catsoulis|first=Jeannette|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126205950/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/movies/27banks.html|archive-date=January 26, 2021|url-status=live}} {{Rating|3|5}}</ref> [[Greg Quill]] of the ''[[Toronto Star]]'' pointed out that Elkoff's script carried elements of [[F. Scott Fitzgerald]] and his novel ''[[The Great Gatsby]]'' and had predictable revelations, but gave praise to the "sensitively and intelligently" written characters and Durst for being a storyteller with "great care and assurance" and an attention to detail on time period without being showy about it, calling it "an earnest, if romanticized, examination of the American class system in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the eternally confounding politics of acceptance and exclusion."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2009/04/17/the_education_of_charlie_banks_public_dreams_private_school.html|title=The Education of Charlie Banks: Public dreams, private school|last=Quill|first=Greg|author-link=Greg Quill|newspaper=[[Toronto Star]]|date=April 17, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919104940/https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2009/04/17/the_education_of_charlie_banks_public_dreams_private_school.html|archive-date=September 19, 2020|url-status=live}} {{Rating|2.5|4}}</ref> Despite being skeptic towards Durst's attempt to have viewers sympathize with the rebel Mick, ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''{{'}}s [[Owen Gleiberman]] gave note of his "theatrical chops" and concluded that "Ritter, who's like the young [[Ethan Hawke]] on a bender of violence, is an actor to watch."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2009/03/25/education-charlie-banks/|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Gleiberman|first=Owen|author-link=Owen Gleiberman|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=March 25, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926143237/https://ew.com/article/2009/03/25/education-charlie-banks/|archive-date=September 26, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref> Michael Rechtshaffen of ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' was critical of Elkoff's writing being "overtly literate" and Durst's direction for "underscoring the obvious", but commended him for being able to "establish[ing] the specifics of place and time" in the film's setting and craft an "impressively acted ensemble" with his young performers, highlighting Ritter's portrayal for having "a believably brooding intensity with a bad boy swagger" reminiscent of a young [[Matt Dillon]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/education-charlie-banks-film-review-93006|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Rechtshaffen|first=Michael|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=March 26, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170702061410/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/education-charlie-banks-film-review-93006|archive-date=July 2, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
Jeannette Catsoulis of ''[[The New York Times]]'' praised the film for Durst's detail-oriented direction in capturing the early '80s, and the "sincere performances (most notably from Mr. Ritter and Eva Amurri as Charlie's upper-crust crush) and clever writing" for keeping it from being "maudlin" and tell "a prickly examination of the sturdiness of class boundaries and the illusion of inclusion."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/movies/27banks.html|title=Probing Class Consciousness|last=Catsoulis|first=Jeannette|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126205950/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/movies/27banks.html|archive-date=January 26, 2021|url-status=live}} {{Rating|3|5}}</ref> [[Greg Quill]] of the ''[[Toronto Star]]'' pointed out that Elkoff's script carried elements of [[F. Scott Fitzgerald]] and his novel ''[[The Great Gatsby]]'' and had predictable revelations, but gave praise to the "sensitively and intelligently" written characters and Durst for being a storyteller with "great care and assurance" and an attention to detail on time period without being showy about it, calling it "an earnest, if romanticized, examination of the American class system in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the eternally confounding politics of acceptance and exclusion."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2009/04/17/the_education_of_charlie_banks_public_dreams_private_school.html|title=The Education of Charlie Banks: Public dreams, private school|last=Quill|first=Greg|author-link=Greg Quill|newspaper=[[Toronto Star]]|date=April 17, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919104940/https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2009/04/17/the_education_of_charlie_banks_public_dreams_private_school.html|archive-date=September 19, 2020|url-status=live}} {{Rating|2.5|4}}</ref> Despite being skeptic towards Durst's attempt to have viewers sympathize with the rebel Mick, ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''{{'}}s [[Owen Gleiberman]] gave note of his "theatrical chops" and concluded that: "Ritter, who's like the young [[Ethan Hawke]] on a bender of violence, is an actor to watch."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2009/03/25/education-charlie-banks/|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Gleiberman|first=Owen|author-link=Owen Gleiberman|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=March 25, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926143237/https://ew.com/article/2009/03/25/education-charlie-banks/|archive-date=September 26, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref> Michael Rechtshaffen of ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' was critical of Elkoff's writing being "overtly literate" and Durst's direction for "underscoring the obvious", but commended him for being able to "establish[ing] the specifics of place and time" in the film's setting and craft an "impressively acted ensemble" with his young performers, highlighting Ritter's portrayal for having "a believably brooding intensity with a bad boy swagger" reminiscent of a young [[Matt Dillon]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/education-charlie-banks-film-review-93006|title=The Education of Charlie Banks|last=Rechtshaffen|first=Michael|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=March 26, 2009|access-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170702061410/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/education-charlie-banks-film-review-93006|archive-date=July 2, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 13:48, 5 May 2021

The Education of Charlie Banks
Promotional film poster
Directed byFred Durst
Written byPeter Elkoff
Produced byMarisa Polvino
Peter Elkoff
StarringJesse Eisenberg
Jason Ritter
Eva Amurri
Gloria Votsis
Chris Marquette
CinematographyAlex Nepomniaschy
Edited byEric L. Beason
Music byJohn Swihart
Distributed byAnchor Bay Entertainment
Release dates
  • April 27, 2007 (2007-04-27) (Tribeca)
  • March 27, 2009 (2009-03-27)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$5 million
Box office$15,078

The Education of Charlie Banks is a 2007 American drama film directed by Fred Durst, produced by Straight Up Film's Marisa Polvino and starring Jesse Eisenberg, Jason Ritter, Eva Amurri, Gloria Votsis, and Chris Marquette. It had its world premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival, where it won the Made in NY Narrative Award given to the best narrative film made in New York City. It is Durst's film directing debut.

Plot

As a kid, Charlie Banks (Jesse Eisenberg) both admired and feared the charismatic and violent local tough Mick Leary (Jason Ritter); in high school, Charlie witnesses Mick beat up two jocks at a party, leaving the two victims near death. Despite Mick being the buddy of his best friend, Danny (Chris Marquette), Charlie reports Mick to the police.

Three years later, Charlie and Danny are college freshmen who are in for a surprise when Mick shows up for a visit. Though claiming to be visiting for the weekend, Mick moves into the two friends' dorm and begins borrowing their clothing, attending their classes, reading their books, and flirting with a woman (Eva Amurri) on whom Charlie has a crush. Charlie begins to wonder if Mick has changed or if he is plotting a fiendish revenge against Charlie for turning him in to the police.

Cast

Release

The film premiered at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival, where it won Best New York Narrative.[1] It received a limited release in North America on March 27, 2009, before being released on DVD three months later on June 30, 2009.[2]

Reception

The Education of Charlie Banks garnered mixed reviews from critics. It holds a 48% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 31 reviews, with an average rating of 5.2/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Unevenness and earnestness mire this otherwise sweet, surprising coming of age drama."[3] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 50 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[4]

Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times wrote that: "Durst's direction is overly earnest, heavy in long takes, atmosphere wise but scene foolish."[5] Joe Neumaier of the New York Daily News praised Eisenberg for giving a "nicely understated performance" as an "endearing everyman" but felt that Ritter "doesn't have the necessary air of danger the script requires" in his role.[6] Kyle Smith of the New York Post criticized the film's characters for being nothing but a "writer's creation" that deliver "flat and unconvincing" dialogue in an "improbable" story, but gave credit to Ritter for having "the charisma of a young Val Kilmer" and Durst for showing "a few stylistic touches that indicate he may have better films in him."[7] Norman Wilner of NOW felt that Durst delivered "an overwhelmingly safe movie", criticizing Elkoff's script for having "simple dramatic constructions" and "measured steps" in its plot, and Eisenberg for giving a "blandly conceived version" of the characters he usually portrays, concluding that: "He does the required stammering and shrugging, but it's a tossed-off turn in a movie that’s similarly on autopilot."[8]

Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times praised the film for Durst's detail-oriented direction in capturing the early '80s, and the "sincere performances (most notably from Mr. Ritter and Eva Amurri as Charlie's upper-crust crush) and clever writing" for keeping it from being "maudlin" and tell "a prickly examination of the sturdiness of class boundaries and the illusion of inclusion."[9] Greg Quill of the Toronto Star pointed out that Elkoff's script carried elements of F. Scott Fitzgerald and his novel The Great Gatsby and had predictable revelations, but gave praise to the "sensitively and intelligently" written characters and Durst for being a storyteller with "great care and assurance" and an attention to detail on time period without being showy about it, calling it "an earnest, if romanticized, examination of the American class system in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the eternally confounding politics of acceptance and exclusion."[10] Despite being skeptic towards Durst's attempt to have viewers sympathize with the rebel Mick, Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman gave note of his "theatrical chops" and concluded that: "Ritter, who's like the young Ethan Hawke on a bender of violence, is an actor to watch."[11] Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter was critical of Elkoff's writing being "overtly literate" and Durst's direction for "underscoring the obvious", but commended him for being able to "establish[ing] the specifics of place and time" in the film's setting and craft an "impressively acted ensemble" with his young performers, highlighting Ritter's portrayal for having "a believably brooding intensity with a bad boy swagger" reminiscent of a young Matt Dillon.[12]

References

  1. ^ "Tribeca Film Festival Awards History" (PDF). Tribeca Film. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 February 2011. Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  2. ^ "The Education of Charlie Banks". Moviefone. Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  3. ^ "The Education of Charlie Banks (2007)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  4. ^ "The Education of Charlie Banks Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on December 4, 2015. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  5. ^ Abele, Robert (March 27, 2009). "The Education of Charlie Banks". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 29, 2009. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  6. ^ Neumaier, Joe; Weitzman, Elizabeth (March 27, 2009). "Short takes: 'Cindy Sherman,' 'Charlie Banks,' 'American Swing'". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on August 22, 2009. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  7. ^ Smith, Kyle (March 27, 2009). "The Education of Charlie Banks". New York Post. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  8. ^ Wilner, Norman (April 14, 2009). "The Education of Charlie Banks". NOW. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  9. ^ Catsoulis, Jeannette (March 27, 2009). "Probing Class Consciousness". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  10. ^ Quill, Greg (April 17, 2009). "The Education of Charlie Banks: Public dreams, private school". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  11. ^ Gleiberman, Owen (March 25, 2009). "The Education of Charlie Banks". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  12. ^ Rechtshaffen, Michael (March 26, 2009). "The Education of Charlie Banks". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 2, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
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