Review of Bully (2010) by Vanessa H — 02 Jul 2007
Extremely powerful, compelling and very well structured film, featuring excellent performances from Brad Renfro, Nick Stahl and Michael Pitt. Marty and Bobby, two teenagers living in Florida, have been 'best friends' most of their lives but their relationship has always been troubling.
When Marty's new girlfriend, Lisa, starts hanging out with them, she sees how Bobby treats him, and then things start to spiral out of control... Based on true events, it's a familiar story that's been utilised in different ways before and since (Fun and Mean Creek are two examples I can think of), but this is probably one of the best films of its kind I've seen.
The camerawork is dizzying at times and I really felt like I was there. The storyline is also a lot more complex than appears - there's definitely a lot of subtext to Bobby's story that is hinted at - and the film is also surprisingly subtle at times (Ken Park this is not).
Fantastic film. Oh... and I love the final scene with the music which gets gradually louder.
This review of Bully (2010) was written by Vanessa H on 02 Jul 2007.
Bully has generally received mixed reviews.
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