Teenage Dirtbag The Fight Club

Teenage Dirtbag The Fight Club
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Teenage Dirtbag
(2009)

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8 out of 8 found this helpful.

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At first, I wasn't sure I'd like this movie when I sat down to watch it on Netflix. I don't typically watch teenage drama movies, but I was pleasantly surprised by this. Firstly, it's not a teenage drama. I mean, it is, but it's more than that at the same time. To watch Thayer and Amber's relationship slowly turn from antagonistic to friends, to possible romance is a wonderful journey, that was very exceptionally done. Secondly, I know this movie is a cliché that's been done thousands of times. Bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks falls for the high and mighty cheerleader? Breakfast Club, anyone? But this movie was unique in one aspect: It stayed true to life. In reality, Amber WOULDN'T have given up her friends, her way of life to be with Thayer. Very few people have the courage to step outside of the little boxed worlds they live in comfortably, to the unknown, and often times scary world outside of our box. Some scenes were a little... Well, I guess bordering on disturbing. The abuse scenes we see are very tactfully done, and we never really see too much, although we know what's going on. The actors were amazing for this. Scott Michael Foster did an EXCELLENT job as Thayer. For the first few minutes of the movie, I kept waiting for the 'Bad Boy' to show up, before I realized that the boy I was seeing WAS Thayer. He didn't have tattoos, or piercings, or dress in ripped shirts, black pants, etc. Unlike most actors, he used his acting to portray who he was acting, not his clothes or appearance. Noa Hegesh wasn't quite as good as Scott Michael Foster, but still did an incredible job of portraying the cheerleader who's unhappy with her life, but unwilling to change. One last note: The two leads never kissed on screen. Thinking back, I don't think they ever had any real physical contact. But you could still feel the emotions jumping off the screen at you. Very well done movie, one of the best Indie films I've ever seen, if not the best.
Supposedly based on true events, Teenage Dirtbag tells the story of Amber a popular high school girl who is harassed by a delinquent boy,Thayer. Thayer seems to develop an obsession with Amber and what begins as teasing and harassment soon evolves into affection as Thayer tries to reach and connect with Amber.They are placed in the same creative writing class and trough written words they start to understand each other a little better and the class becomes a bonding experience as they share their feelings. A friendship starts to form but Amber is confused by her feelings and Thayer has to withstand his abusive father and a broken home.Teenage Dirtbag is essentially a unrequited love story between teenagers.Very well written and directed,this small independent film turned out to be a pleasant surprise and it deserves more recognition and a wider distribution. The performances were all very solid with a special mention to the lovely Noa Hegesh who did a terrific job as Amber.The musical score which caught me by surprise,complimented the movie very nicely and kinda took it to another level. Overall a great effort by first time director Regina Crosby. 7/10

28 out of 37 found this helpful.

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I once showed "Teenage Dirtbag" to a college class of freshman-level composition students. While none of them absolutely loved it, it kept the entire class in rapt attention, and no one complained that it was just "stupid" or "boring," which is noteworthy. They found Amber Lange and Thayer Mangeress two very well-realized characters, and Amber's poignant closing lines produced a flurry of involuntary hums and sighs. One guy noted that it had a low budget feel, and that he would have liked more special effects, changes in scenery, and everything else one gets from larger company productions. I saw his point but think the lowbudgetness also adds to the essential realism of the film. What my class found most intriguing were the open questions and room for speculation this film leaves about what _really_ happen to Thayer's father and brother. "Teenage Dirtbag" may not be anything truly special, but it accomplishes what its makers set out to do very well: Taut and gripping storyline with excellent acting and characterization. Several years after seeing it, this film remains quite fresh in my mind.

4 out of 4 found this helpful.

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This is my first ever review. I have never felt the need to spread a movie, or voice my opinion before, but I find myself angry that more people have not seen this movie. It is a movie unlike any other. Scott M foster portrays Thayer Mangeris, a delinquent and a somewhat bad boy from a broken home, who grows a connection with Amber Lang, played by Noa Hegesh, through the creative writing class they have together, and their frequent correspondence in study hall via a notebook. Noa, who has never liked Thayer before, having been forced always to sit with him due to their naming order, finds herself growing feelings for this wrong side of the tracks boy. i wont say anything more but this: buy a copy of this movie, for a guarantee you will be watching it again and again.

17 out of 19 found this helpful.

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14 out of 15 found this helpful.

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Let me start by saying this: Teenage Dirtbag has a cliché story line, with cliché characters. But even still, there's something about this movie that draws you in, and holds you. Thayer is your typical bad boy with a broken home. His father and older brother beat on him, he does drugs, skips school, etc... But there's still something about him that makes you sympathize with him, and makes your heart break for him. Amber is your typical rich kid whose parents ignore her, and her friends don't know her, etc... She's not quite as heart-pulling or emotion- provoking, but still good none the less. I was quite impressed by the person they had to play Thayer. He wasn't the tattoo'ed, punked out, buff bad boy I was expecting. He didn't use his looks to portray Thayer, but rather his acting. And he did an amazing job. The soundtrack was also amazing to this. The music was just perfect the whole way through. I think this was more realistic than most stories similar to this. Amber didn't ditch her friends, and go running off with Thayer, even though she wanted to. And most girls wouldn't. It was -depressingly- true to life. Over all, this movie was a must see. I'm typing this as I watch it for the fifth time this month. :D

13 out of 19 found this helpful.

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"Teenage Dirtbag" is a love story between two teenagers who seem different but in reality are very similar. The chemistry between Thayer and Amber is mesmerizing. And it doesn't seem to matter how the characters relate to one another – whether they are fighting or hanging out – their scenes together just leak with sexual tension. And the way everything unfolds is not so much in the words they say but in those silent moments they share: moments that can easily be overlooked if one is not careful. What also makes their chemistry so effective is the awareness Thayer and Amber have of each other. As the attraction between them matures, they always seem to know where the other is without realizing it. For instance, when she's in the football field and he's looking at her from afar, hiding in his black sweatshirt. The way she looks up because she feels him looking at her is an undeniable example of that chemistry. Or when she's eating her orange and feels bad because she know that he's looking at it. By bringing him one the next day, she's acknowledging the fact that she heard the silent way he wanted the orange. Even more so, she's acknowledging the fact that she hears his words unspoken and thus, this orange marks the beginning of a short yet beautiful friendship. The next few scenes are my favourite. When she sees the peeled orange in the snow and the paper he left on her car. The paper doesn't say much, he just writes her name all over it and instead of finding it weird and ignoring it, it inspires her to write a poem that she reads in class the next day. As she reads it, the silent connection between them becomes stronger... After that, Thayer comes out as the more aware partner in the sense that he consciously opens up to her. He lets her see the real him as if he is trying to show her that he sees and trusts the real her. It is not him who has trouble being vulnerable, it is her. She's afraid to let someone in and that is what comes in the way of them being together. Maybe he moves a little too fast for her and that is what makes her uncomfortable. She's not denying the feelings that she has for him but she's just not ready to explore them at this point and while he is attentive to everything, he somewhat neglects to see that. It's sad because he really puts himself out there when he asks her to come to the party with him. But the thing is even though he is ready, she's not. Maybe if he had waited a little bit more, she could have prepared herself for whatever was to happen between them. The awareness between the two is also the reason why both of them know almost intuitively what would hurt the other person the most. Thus, Thayer knew exactly how much he was hurting Amber when he exposed her need for love in his poem and she was very aware of what she was doing when she exposed him by showing everyone the notebook. It's not so much the fact that everyone knew how he felt: that, I think he could deal with. It was the fact that her gesture said loud and clear that she didn't take anything that they shared seriously. And sadly, that could be a little true. It's like she never really realized how badly he needed her to love him. What's even sadder (to me anyways) is that the character of Amber ends up going through life without ever fully realizing how her love could change someone else's life. It's also sad because he ends up believing that she hates him and everything goes downhill after that. Neither one of them is to blame. He made her out to be his Savior and it's a role she didn't ask to take on (of course, in life, the only person who can save yourself is yourself but that's a lesson that most of us don't learn at the age of 17). Nevertheless, this is one of the most beautiful movies I've ever seen in my life. Granted, it isn't flawless: I had to watch it more than once to actually grasp everything. But it is SO sincere. I forgot to say how much I love the scene when they are eating chips and listening to metal music the very loud "crunch" sounds and the giggles made me feel like I was right there with them. I love how close I felt to the characters. This being Regina Crosby's first attempt at writing and directing makes this movie even more amazing. Big time filmmakers have failed where she has succeeded. She managed to draw me in so far that I forgot everything else but what was going on in front of me. Even after the movie was finished, I was left in a weird emotional state that tasted a bit like love, a bit like nostalgia. The things I wish were different: Even though we spend the most time with Amber, we have very little insight on what goes on with her family. We guess by her behaviour that she feels ignored by her parents but it would have helped to see a little more of that. Also: I desperately want to share this movie with my friends but since most of them are french, I can't do that. I bought the DVD but there are no subtitles and so, it puts a barrier in my attempt to let other people in on how good this movie is. I would like to end this (very) long comment by saying that I can't wait to see what else Regina Crosby comes out with. She has definitely made it in my top 10 favourite filmmakers list!
I agree with most of the good reviews of this movie. It affected me really hard. Although I didn't like the poem part because I don't know..I do that when I'm in some emotional personal thoughts and thinking of death. It is small budget film and some unknown actors but who cares? I give them an A. The pacing, acting and directing was great. I also never thought it is a 2009 movie. I was getting into a deep feeling at the end when he's really desperate in getting the girl but why couldn't he just say 'I like/love you' straightforward? Just thinking I thought he could be a lot bolder..Really good movie..Worth a watch. I also like the movie soundtrack at the end, it is tragic but beautiful. Too bad popular movies don't have this.

8 out of 9 found this helpful.

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Where do I begin? First of all, I gave this movie 10 of 10, despite its many flaws, just because it affected me in a way that no other movie has. Scott M. Foster's acting here is more than excellent - it gave me chills and kept me involved to the very end. The soundtrack had a great impact on me too - probably it's the second major factor that makes this one worth-watching. Of course, you'll notice many things that are not right (like when we see Thayer's big scar... and then in some of the next scenes it's gone), but everything about this movie is so emotional that I just ignored its shortcomings. I surely will follow Scott's career with huge interest from now on. This guy has great potential.

14 out of 23 found this helpful.

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I streamed this film on Netflix and honestly, wasn't expecting much. I figured it would be a "bad-boy likes and gets the good-girl" type of cliché film. Boy, was I surprised. This film is a really good story that pulls you in and holds you until the end. The two main characters are both so intense. You can seriously feel their emotions and you cheer for them, you get caught up in their stories. There were parts of this movie that were hard to watch because they are so true-to-life. The filmmakers also paid special attention to the time period, capturing the feel of the late 90s perfectly. This is how high school was for me when I attended school during this period. I remember like Thayer and Amber, being forced in study hall to sit next to this guy I barely knew, and over the course of the year we became friends, writing notes in our notebooks, taking turns bringing snacks, and finding ways to dodge the attention of the grouchy study hall monitor. I was totally able to get wrapped up in the story. I was really impressed with this film and highly recommend it.

2 out of 2 found this helpful.

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I extremely enjoyed this indie gem from the first minute to the last, even though the concept and the various topics, which have been touched in the movie (hatred turning to love, broken home, fitting in, far-from-perfect high school environment), cannot be called authentic. The idea, however, that a certain conflict originating in one's deviation from the average on whatever grounds can be overcome by the power of words is refreshing. Here poetry is the key to annihilate the barriers between the main characters. Through the creative writing class the characters embark on letting each other peek under the surface to discover who they really are. Probably that's why the male leader is so obnoxious when we first encounter him, whereas later it is unavoidable not to like him or at least not to sympathise with him. Poignant film with elaborate characters, nice soundtrack and brilliant poems.

12 out of 19 found this helpful.

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7 out of 12 found this helpful.

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****No major spoilers, just a comment about how characters unfold***** This film gets off to a slow start that is not helped much by the film-making, which shows a lot of promise but is not confident or consistent. Luckily I stuck with it and watched a really nice romantic story unfold between the two leads. Thayer is a layered guy with a haunting persona, expressive face and an incredible knack for creative writing. His scenes in their writing class were the best aspect of the film in my opinion. The female lead was good at times but generally not so well matched for her co- star. All characters outside of the male lead were slightly two dimensional and under-written. Thayer's sister (played by the director I think) has the potential to blossom but she would have needed a couple more lines towards the end of the film (I would have liked to see what the two women spoke about when the female lead asks to speak to her). Technically the film is so-so. The visuals are basic and do the job OK but the dialogue sounds dubbed and really takes away from the drama. When the writing was good it was EXCELLENT and when the two leads had romantic tension (like when Thayer has his head pressed against hers by the lockers) the film showed moments of BRILLIANCE. I would definitely watch the next film from this writer/director, especially if she gets a slig
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