Beneath the surface, everyone has a secret.
Features: DVD, Widescreen, Aspect Ratio 1.85:1, Dolby Digital (5.1), Dolby Digital Surround, Commentary, Storyboards, English Subtitled
With wonderfully authentic performances from a talented cast including Rory Culkin (Signs, You Can Count on Me) and Trevor Morgan, first-time director Jacob Aaron Estes brings you a story of friendship, tolerance and forgiveness that Roger Ebert calls "extraordinary" and Entertainment Weekly says is "...a terrifically harrowing tale!"Sam (Culkin) can't seem to forget the day he was beaten at school by the class bully, George. His teenage brother Rocky (Morgan) won't let him forget, either. Together with his best friends, Rocky plans a little harmless revenge and a lesson in humility. But, when the plan turns suddenly tragic, the true lesson of consequence is one they must all learn themselves. Kenneth Turan of the L.A. Times says Mean Creek is "...a revelation...with echoes of Deliverance and...River's Edge."
"Haunting! Powerfully Articulated!" A.O. Scott, The New York Times
"Intelligent, universal tale." Duane Byrge, The Hollywood Reporter
"One of very few films to accurately portray the experience of growing up male." Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle
Editor's Note
Director Jacob Estes's feature film debut is a remarkably accomplished coming of age drama about death and consequences. When overweight, emotionally troubled George (Josh Peck) beats up a smaller kid named Sam (Rory Culkin) one time too many, his older brother Rocky (Trevor Morgan) and Rocky's wrong-side-of-the-tracks pal (Scott Mechlowicz) decide to teach George a lesson. Along with their friend Clyde (Ryan Kelley)--who was once the brunt of George's violence himself--they bring George on a boat trip with a cruel prank in mind. Sam brings his love interest, Milly (Carly Schroeder), who tries to stop the plan when she decides George is a nice guy after all. Tragic things happen nonetheless with the slow, languid rhythm of life in a small Oregon town. Along the way, Estes manages to capture many fine moments of poetic realism like the stillness of the forest around the river, the swirling eddies along the shore, a snail crawling along a leaf, and a drowning video camera. Cinematographer Sharone Meir uses color filters and washed-out film stock to make everything glow with faded colors like old family photographs. The dialogue feels natural and the acting is precise; Estes obviously loves his cast and allows plenty of time and space for their characters to breathe, think, and be the confused kids they're meant to be.
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