Review of Boy Wonder (2010) by Icame S — 12 Feb 2013

What you have in this near-perfectly toned indy movie is a pretty stark, honest portrayal of a young man's life spiraling grimly and coldly towards a climax wherein justice may well be served. All the while though, he remains in control - in spite of his straight-A, introverted nerdism at school he's tough and confident away from it. You take the ride with the character, you quickly get to know his mind and feel a sympathy with him, mistakes and all. The film's climax itself is a sequence of events that surprises and, if I'm honest, impresses (in that fictional world). You still can't be sure whether Sean was entirely right - who was lying, who was telling the truth? - but that ambiguity is actually somewhat refreshing.

The fairly sparse script reflects the lead character's often withdrawn mood, as does the considered camera work and choice of music, although I thought at times there was a little too much of the latter. But it is well written and the acting is good, with Caleb Steinmeyer as Sean really making you sit up and take notice on a couple of occasions. Also, all the characters are simply, though well enough shaded with little in them being black and white, which was good to see.

What the makers have done is taken a story that isn't really that far above average, and that could have come out a lot worse, and crafted an engaging, unsettling, minor masterpiece of a drama.