Mean Creek

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Rory Culkin gets his brother to help him exact revenge on a bully, and of course, things go horribly wrong.

Rory Culkin plays Sam, a middle school kid who gets picked on by a bully, who has mental issues and is held back a few grades. The bully bothers other kids too, so most kids in school hate him. Sam’s older brother and his friends are in high school, and they remember being in the same grade as the bully so they know all about what a fabulous human being he can be to others.

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There seems to be a lack of parents in the movie until the very end. The kids are off on their own doing a lot of stuff, when they could use some parental supervision.

Sam and his girlfriend are going on their first “date”, but on that same day they are going to play a prank on the bully by saying they are all going canoeing. The real plan is to leave him out there or get him to strip naked and jump into the water while they all leave so he can walk home naked and wet. Sam, his older brother and his two friends are in on it. He doesn’t tell his girlfriend until they get there. She’s confused about what’s going on since she doesn’t like the bully either, and the bully seems to think it is Sam’s birthday, and that’s why they are all going on the river. She doesn’t like the idea, and tells Sam they shouldn’t do it.

While the day goes on, others in the group get to know the bully some more and go back and forth on whether they should pull the prank. One guy is adamant that they stick to the plan, but, of course, the plan doesn’t go off without a hitch. Horrible things happen and then they all have to deal with the aftermath.

it’s a bit of a downer movie, but all the kids in it are great. You actually feel sorry for the bully when a few others do, but then you see a bit later why they all hate him. You go back and forth about whether they should do it or not. It isn’t a happy ending either, but I did wish it would have gone on a little longer. It seemed to end a bit short. I wanted to see a bit more of the aftermath since I felt like I was hanging on what happened or would happen with a few characters.

Grade: B

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