Review of Bart Got a Room (2008) by Maggie P — 02 Aug 2009

Writer/director Brian Hecker's Bart Got a Room had a lot of things going against it before I had seen it. If there is one particular sort of teen comedy that I hate, it's ones that either center around prom or builds up to a finale that deals with the prom. I hate how the characters in most of these films act, how they obsess about making the night perfect, losing their virginity, standing up to the bitch/bully of the school, finally realizing at the end of the film that they should have been with that one guy/girl the whole time and all of the other frustrating conventional goings-on that fill these sorts of films.

As Bart Got a Room reached its climax, at the prom no less, I found that this film had defied my expectations greatly. It does contain a few elements that have been in countless other teen comedies, but Hecker's screenplay gave all of this a much needed face lift. And he injected a fantastic level of heart and charm to the whole ordeal, and made a film that was far more entertaining than you'd expect.

Danny Stein (Steven Kaplan) is a really well rounded character, and an extremely likable guy. Kaplan does a fantastic job at bringing this character to life, and added a perfectly degree of quirkiness to Danny. It appeared that the film had it in for Danny, since every step he takes to make his prom experience the best it can be, things always went the other way. Sometimes the bad things that happened to Danny were heartbreaking, but all of them had their laughs to them. Kaplan is one of the standout performances I've seen this year.

I really enjoyed William H. Macy and Cheryl Hines as Danny's father and mother, especially Macy. The two of them are divorced, so the movie contains a lot of scenes where Ernie (Macy) is on dates with various women. All of them are awkward situations, but so funny you can't help but stick through them. Hearing Macy deliver some of his lines, and the way he carried himself was pure comedy genius. And that Jew-fro that he had, hilarious!

The title of the film refers to Bart Beeder (Chad Jamian Williams), who is sort of the school's biggest loser. But somehow he has managed to secure a date for prom, and a hotel room for afterward. This is the prime motive of Danny's to create the best prom experience for himself. This concept could have lead to a typical outcome, and for most of the film I was expecting that. But Hecker is one step ahead and ends his film the best way possible, the right way!

In the end, the movie is more about the really important things in life, and how sometimes we can lose sight of these things simply because we are needlessly in constant competition with the people around us. Hecker knows this, and formulates a teen comedy that goes against the grain and does the unexpected. Bart Got a Room turns out to be one of the biggest surprises of 2009.