Review of American Teen (2008) by Sally S — 27 Dec 2008

This is a case of a documentary's subjects being far more interesting and compelling than the documentary itself. The filmmaking techniques used here are good, but they are no more honest than that of your typical MTV "reality" show.

However, the kids here (I say this knowing they are all my age now) are real, genuine people. For better or worse, I felt that the film's subjects were - on the whole - honest. Now, the editing of the filmmaker, on the other hand - that's where the movie left me uneasy.

It's odd to find a case where a story can be near fiction while the characters are completely true, but that's pretty much what American Teen is.