CS Weekly Archive > Weekend Read > 3/27/09

Higher Education

By jenelle riley

In the 1970s, Charlie Banks (Jesse Eisenberg) learns tough lessons about moral responsibility and social class when he forms a tenuous friendship with the charming but explosive Mick Leary (Jason Ritter).

The Education of Charlie Banks

Peter Elkoff

The Education of Charlie Banks will likely garner a great deal of attention because of its director: Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst. As it turns out, along with an excellent cast, the direction is one of the strongest aspects of the film. Though Durst directed one other film, last year's family-friendly Ice Cube vehicle The Longshots, Charlie Banks actually marked his directorial debut. After premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2007, where it won the "Made in New York" award, it is finally making its way to theaters. And while Durst has a strong vision behind the camera and has obviously put much care into crafting the coming-of-age story, the film itself ultimately suffers from a meandering and predictable script that never satisfactorily answers the many questions it raises.

The movie opens in Greenwich Village on the striking image of two young boys on a school bus watching with both fear and awe as the local bully, Mick Leary, swaggers onto a basketball court. One of the boys, Danny, actually has to deliver the wince-inducing line, "He's the baddest kid in the neighborhood." In a voiceover by Charlie, we learn that, even at this young age, Mick is legendary for his violent outbursts.

At age 16, Charlie and Danny (Christopher Marquette) witness one of those violent displays when Mick brutally beats two frat boys at a party. Charlie turns Mick in to the police, but later withdraws his testimony. Two years later, while Charlie and Danny are roommates at an Ivy League school, Mick shows up and begins to insinuate himself into their lives. The film begins to raise some interesting possibilities, and seems as though it could go in many directions. There's a distinct Single White Female vibe as Mick begins to dress like Charlie and attend his classes—they even become interested in the same girl. There are Great Gatsby-esque ideals presented about how people are unfairly separated by social class. And, of course, there's a thriller element surrounding what will happen if and when Mick learns it was Charlie who ratted him out years ago. But in trying to be all these things, none of the stories are resolved satisfactorily.

Writer Peter Elkoff paints his characters with broad strokes; they're all archetypes we've seen before. Though the actors do an admirable job with what they're given, there is nothing new or interesting to digest here. He does get off some good one-liners—when Danny asks if Charlie hates his shoes, Charlie replies, "Obviously; I've been given the gift of sight," and when Mick learns someone is half Irish and half Jewish he remarks, "So what does that mean, you get your whiskey wholesale?" But Elkoff often relies on distracting voiceover to explain what's happening, and aside from the opening and closing scenes, the device feels unnecessary.

The look of the film is excellent, genuinely capturing the atmosphere of both the era and the privileged East Coast lifestyle. Durst proves to have an assured cinematic eye and a way with his young actors—particularly Eisenberg and Ritter. One hopes next time everyone involved will have a better story to showcase their abilities. If nothing else, Charlie Banks feels like a good warm-up for a lot of talented people.

The Education of Charlie Banks
Anchor Bay Entertainment
Rated R; 100 min.

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Jenelle Riley is a journalist and playwright living in Los Angeles. She enjoys good food and bad horror movies.



The Education of Charlie Banks courtesy Anchor Bay Entertainment

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