Review of As Cool as I Am (2013) by Steve W — 11 Oct 2013

The first half of 'As Cool As I Am' started out fantastic, taking its time to establish the main players in Lucy's life which is mainly her parents and her best friend since they were kids, Kenny. Sarah Bolger, who plays Lucy, embodied the part so well that it's quite hard not to side with her --- flaws and all. Claire Danes and James Marden, for the most part, were effective and sometimes brilliant. However, the movie started to fell apart when it tried to do too much. Instead of focusing on one theme it started adding in heavy sub-plots that didn't go anywhere or if they did, they didn't come to a satisfying close that would eventually support the main plot. It's an extreme disservice because the first half of the movie was really good. There were some well put together scenes which showed moments of brilliance.

As much as I want to remember the movie for the first half, I can't erase from memory the last 30 minutes and especially the ending that wasted great talents like Peter Fonda. Suddenly, the movie ends with a whimper... as if the writer just ran out of paper to write on. In coming of age movies like this one, it's important that the main characters come face to face with the need to evolve and move from point a to b. Ultimately, although the ending somehow shows us that Lucy finds peace in surrendering to her fate, it feels abrupt and forced.