Thor Freudenthal
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The 1999 Drew Barrymore romcom “Never Been Kissed” is referenced multiple times in “Words on Bathroom Walls,” with the older film cast in a rosy Proustian glow that may come as a jolt to any viewers who remember the 20th century.
While the Never Been Kissed references and patriarchal quips are a bit stilted, the fashion in which Maya’s home life is revealed is very effective.
He keeps his condition a secret from her (and as it turns out, she’s keeping mum about some things, too), but inevitably their feelings for one another deepen and real romance is in the air—though one might question the wisdom of having the lovebirds bond over a shared reverence for Drew Barrymore’s 1999 romcom “Never Been Kissed,” even if it’s intended as a joke.
If it continues to hit some cheesy beats (Maya is a feminism-spouting valedictorian but she secretly loves Never Been Kissed and is itching to be invited to prom), there's undeniable sweetness as a secretive and cynical pair of teens come nervously together.
Yes, Plummer and Russell are a cute, screwball-esque, cine-literate couple (they bond over Drew Barrymore rom-com Never Been Kissed and Adam likes to draw comparisons between his life and Will Hunting’s) a la those featured in The Fault in Our Stars , Five Feet Apart and the like, but there are complications to their lives that these kind of movies don’t always explore.
Tutoring turns into something more as the two young leads have great chemistry and would make fine partners in a romantic comedy — territory “Words” veers into when Adam discovers that his super-serious classmate’s favorite movie is “Never Been Kissed.”
The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
Directed by Josh Boone
influenced Words on Bathroom Walls (2020)
Themes Plot
I was reminded at times of The Fault in Our Stars , another YA adaptation about illness with low-key religious themes and a central relationship that morphs from platonic friendship into romance.
Overall, Words is the one of the most gratifying young-adult-novels-turned-films since 2014’s The Fault in Our Stars.
While The Fault in Our Stars received perhaps the widest popularity in its love story centered on terminally ill teens, the genre was at its finest with The Hate U Give ‘s youth-centered examination of racism and police brutality.
Yes, Plummer and Russell are a cute, screwball-esque, cine-literate couple (they bond over Drew Barrymore rom-com Never Been Kissed and Adam likes to draw comparisons between his life and Will Hunting’s) a la those featured in The Fault in Our Stars , Five Feet Apart and the like, but there are complications to their lives that these kind of movies don’t always explore.
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life (2016)
Directed by Steve Carr
influenced by Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010)
Themes Plot
Others will find Middle School doesn't stand out from other quirky American high-school-based books that have become movies - Diary of a Wimpy Kid comes to mind.
Based on one in the series of kids’ books co-authored by James Patterson, who’s turned himself into a publishing juggernaut by parceling out the writing to a small army of collaborators and has also been trying to establish a foothold in the movie business with his own production company (and, unless I’m mistaken, has a brief cameo here as an angry restaurant owner), the picture is a pretty dismal retread of territory already covered in the three “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movies, which were hardly great shakes but were nevertheless better than this.
The beginning has a strong “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” vibe.
Although its illustrative breakouts, sibling rivalry and endless pranks invites comparisons to the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, it actually more closely evokes the works of John Hughes, especially Ferris Bueller's Day Off and The Breakfast Club, with its emphasis on "stopping the fun being sucked out of childhood".
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
Directed by Stephen Chbosky
influenced Words on Bathroom Walls (2020)
Plot Themes
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: It somewhat mirrors The Perks of Being a Wallflower with its mentally ill protagonist, first-person narrative style and new-kid-in-school plot.
However, one wishes Words on Bathroom Walls captured the raw emotional depths of films like The Perks of Being a Wallflower or Edge of Seventeen .
Now following in The Perks of Being a Wallflower ‘s shoes, another story of young love, self-acceptance, and mental illness is offered in Words on Bathroom Walls .
The setup for director Thor Freudenthal’s (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) drama might sound like something you’ve seen countless times before in movies like The Perks of Being a Wallflower or Girl, Interrupted, but there is a distinctive approach that Words on Bathroom Walls takes that is more realistic and uplifting than most teenage love stories.
This new installment of the popular book series by writer Rick Riordan is even more “Potter”-ized with the young demigods gathered at Long Island’s Camp Half-Blood, essentially a Hogwarts in the woods, where they attend classes taught by venerable centaur Chiron (Anthony Head of TV’s “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) and Mr. D. (Stanley Tucci) as in Dionysus, who is constantly trying to pour himself a glass of wine that turns into water, facilitating a funny Jesus reference.
Anthony Head, who was a regular on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” also appears in this film as Chiron.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
influenced Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)
Plot Visuals
There’s also a Raiders of the Lost Ark homage so blatant that I thought I’d slipped into a parody film of some sort.
As with seemingly every tween-targeted franchise nowadays, Sea of Monsters owes a considerable debt to many better movies, most strikingly Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Large parts of the film directed by Thor Freudenthal (“Hotel for Dogs”) look so much like scenes from “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” I wondered, “When are the Nazis showing up?”
The late John Hughes had a talent for taking the banal suburban middle class angst of boring American teenagers and turning it into clever, fast-talking comedy in pictures like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club.
Young Sherlock Holmes (1985)
Directed by Barry Levinson
influenced Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)
Visuals
One of the pic’s rare moments of inspiration comes in detailing Kronos’ backstory, presented in an impressive sequence in which Percy perceives a stained-glass window come to life (not in the freaky “Young Sherlock Holmes” sense, but as an elegant standalone animated interlude).
The result: the moppy-headed fellow son of Poseidon spends most of the movie looking like Brendan Fraser in “ Encino Man .”
A Beautiful Mind (2001)
Directed by Ron Howard
influenced Words on Bathroom Walls (2020)
Characters Themes
Like Russell Crowe’s John Nash in A Beautiful Mind , he’s orbited by a cast of supporting characters that only he can see and hear, representing various aspects of his psyche.
Comparisons to Ron Howard’s Best Picture-winning A Beautiful Mind are likely inevitable.
The Hunger Games (2012)
Directed by Gary Ross
influenced Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)
Themes
One scene brings to mind The Hunger Games, though the Potter vibe is more often palpable.
This new Percy Jackson film also boasts Nathan Fillion as Hermes, god of UPS, apparently; a cyclops half brother of Percy named Tyson (Douglas Smith); and tiresome braggart Clarisse (Leven Rambim of “The Hunger Games”), daughter of Ares.
There’s the usual basic character arcs at play: Percy is afraid he won’t live up to his potential, Annabeth is prejudiced against a half-cyclops named Tyson (Douglas Smith), and Clarisse is an insufferable ass (you may recognize Ms. Rambin from The Hunger Games, in which she also played an insufferable ass).
He is often teased by the Xena-like daughter of Ares Clarisse La Rue (Leven Rambin of “The Hunger Games”).
Indeed, it is the bond between these two that helps the film stand out from the crowd of lesser, more stereotypical middle school-set pictures like 2001's " Max Keeble's Big Move ."
Based on Lois Duncan’s junior novel (she also wrote the book on which “I Know What You Did Last Summer” was based!) and directed by Thor Freudenthal, “Hotel for Dogs” is strictly for the young folks.
The Frighteners (1996)
Directed by Peter Jackson
influenced Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)
Visuals
The Stygian witches turn up as cab drivers in a frenetic goof of a sequence, squabbling as always over that lone eyeball and suggesting the free-spirited grossness of Peter Jackson 's The Frighteners.
The late John Hughes had a talent for taking the banal suburban middle class angst of boring American teenagers and turning it into clever, fast-talking comedy in pictures like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Directed by John Hughes
influenced Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010)
Characters
The late John Hughes had a talent for taking the banal suburban middle class angst of boring American teenagers and turning it into clever, fast-talking comedy in pictures like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club.
Not many young actors can get to us like an adolescent wiseass over the long haul; Matthew Broderick got away with it in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,’’ but just barely.
Zachary Gordon (2007's " Georgia Rule ") is spunky and sympathetic as Greg, while Robert Capron (2009's " Bride Wars ") is a standout as Rowley, an earnest, stand-up guy who beats to the rhythm of his own drum and doesn't judge his own self-worth based upon how many people like him.
It isn't as good as " A Christmas Story ," as few movies are, but it deserves a place in the same sentence.
Structurally, this film by Thor Freudenthal ("Mind the Gap," "Hotel for Dogs") has much in common with the film version of Jean Shepherd's childhood memoir, In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash, better known as "A Christmas Story."
Welcome to the Dollhouse (1996)
Directed by Todd Solondz
influenced Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010)
Themes
Based on the book series by Jeff Kinney, "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" is no "Welcome to the Dollhouse," but as a PG-rated family film navigating the frequent pitfalls and rare triumphs of a sixth grade nothing, it's got a certain charm and wisdom about it.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón
influenced Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)
Plot
Regardless of the fact that Guggenheim’s scripting may be a side product of condensing Rick Riordan’s novel — one would assume that while they’re in the business of pilfering from Potter (Riordan’s novels were published in 2005 – J.K Rowling’s first Potter novel was published in 1997 & Philosopher’s Stone was released cinematically in 2001) they should take cues from post-Cuaròn Potter (HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN); honour the ‘essential/elemental’ story i.e. shifted the focus to Harry as the central figure at the expense of slavish adherence to every detail.