Directed by:
Jason BatemanScreenplay:
Andrew DodgeCinematography:
Ken SengComposer:
Rolfe KentCast:
Jason Bateman, Ben Falcone, Allison Janney, Rachael Harris, Judith Hoag, Beth Grant, Philip Baker Hall, Patricia Belcher, Steve Witting, Anjul Nigam (more)VOD (1)
Plots(1)
Jason Bateman directs and stars in this comedy as Guy Trilby, a 40-year-old school dropout who, after finding a loophole, enters The Golden Quill children's spelling bee and befriends Chaitanya (Rohan Chand), one of his fellow competitors. Due to never having graduated beyond the eighth grade, Guy is able to enter himself into the competition - much to the chagrin of contest officials and the parents of competing children. Meanwhile, Jenny Widgeon (Kathryn Hahn), a local news reporter, attempts to find out Guy's real motivations for entering. (Universal Pictures AU)
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Reviews (3)
A pleasant comedy which seems quite strange at first, but then the small Indian starts cheerfully F-ing and blinding, countering Bateman’s verbal canapés. Then it gets a second wind and this excellent pair end up in a police car, proudly and with respect in the finish. Great for enriching your vocabulary if you aren’t an English native speaker.
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The film had the potential to be a decent comedy with a hint of drama, but the creators needed to take a different approach. They should have leaned into incorrect humor, which would mean completely rewriting the storyline about the friendship with the boy whose name I wouldn't want to have to spell. Instead, the film felt like a feeble attempt at a bitter comedy, ultimately stumbling and faltering before the finish line due to a lack of boldness. Yes, it's crucial to stay current and not stray from the norm. In any case, the film only heightened my aversion to all those crazy children's competitions, from spelling bees to child beauty pageants. The pressure on kids from ambitious parents, who project their own failures and desire for fame onto their children, must be hell. P.S. For a better experience, I recommend watching the music video by the band Clawfinger: "Biggest & The Best." / Lesson learned: It's never too late to delegate the fulfillment of your dreams to another person.
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A good idea, but it’s not finished. Jason Bateman stepped behind and in front of the camera to film a movie about a bitter man who wants to destroy a children's spelling bee. Apparently, he can do it due to a loophole in the rules. Bateman has a certain charm that works even in the case of this asshole character. Unfortunately, in the end, it's still predictably the same, which is a real shame. Why can't it sometimes be a punch to the gut instead of just a lame caress?
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