The Perfect Score (2004)

I do not know why I went to see The Perfect Score earlier today. I have this huge ego thing that I should give almost every film a chance no matter how bad it looks. I can also admit that I am a huge fan of Scarlett Johansson because of her work in both Ghost World and Lost in Translation. This film to me looked rather Idiotic even at first but I figured it couldn't be as bad as it looks. Well, sadly I was wrong but please continue reading my review as I rip apart the disaster that is the Perfect Score.

The Perfect Score is about two best friends Kyle (Chris Evans) and Matt (Bryan Greenberg) who want to steal the answers to the SAT in order to achieve their own personal goals. Well, they decide they can't do it alone so they need the help of Francesca (Scarlett Johansson) to help. They need her because guess what her Daddy owns the building where the make the SAT test. Oh how convenient. Well, then Kyle falls for Anna (Erika Christensen) who is the 2nd smartest girl in school but for some reason is afraid she will fail the SAT. Well, sooner or later Anna tells Desmond (Darious Miles) who asks Anna for help on the SAT because he needs to get into college to play Basketball. Well, before all is said and done Roy (Leonardo Nam) overhears a conversation that Kyle and Matt are having in the bathroom about robbing the SAT answers so he too wants in. Together these 6 morons will work together to plan the ultimate heist to steal the answers to the SATs and achieve the perfect score.

Well, lets tackle the films acting first. Well, it's very amateurish. Scarlett Johansson who is a brilliant actress and she proves so in such great movies like Ghost World and Lost in Translation is truly horrible in the film. She plays a smart slutty girl who does nothing but hate daddy and wear push up bras. I normally don't make sexual jokes but I think if anyone in this film should get an applause it should be Scarlett Johansson's boobs. They gave a terrific performance. Scarlett I beg of you no more bad films, you're a terrific actress read the scripts and say no to the bad ones. I know you can do it. I also usually enjoy the work of Erika Christensen who starred in the films Homeroom, Traffic and Swim fan. Once again she is useless here but at least her character isn't as annoying as rest. Leonardo Nam was the worst character in the whole film. The always high Chinese guy. Oh my god I wanted to run for the exit when he popped on screen. Awful who writes these freaking characters? Chris Evans, who starred in one of the worst films I have ever dared to witness, Not Another Teen Movie was actually tolerable in this film although a few more acting classes may be necessary. And lastly Bryan Greenberg and Darious Miles seemed like they were trying to make the lousy script work but failed at it horribly.

The director of this masterpiece is named Brian Robbins who brought us other Academy Award winning films including the wonderful Ready to Rumble with David Arquette, and Varsity Blues with James Van Der Beek. Needless to say he hasn't made too good of choices in the directing category. He actually produced Radio which was a huge surprise to me since I think that's one of the only films I have seen that he has been apart of that hasn't sucked! I know I am sounding mean but there are far to many crappy films being made each year so I feel I have to really criticize the ones that are truly awful. I am actually going to give Brian Robbins one last chance in 2005 when he directs the remake of the Shaggy

Fmovies: Of COURSE this is not Gone With the Wind or The Godfather or Apocalypse Now, it's a teen flick and I find it absolutely hilarious, and vastly underrated by some very snobbish commentary I've read.

First, please understand that this reviewer is several things: A BIG movie buff capable of separating movies into genres and mental compartments rather than comparing apples to oranges in boneheaded fashion, I am not finished watching the DVD yet (it's on pause, but...I do that: watch and simultaneously check out IMDb, part of the fun), I'm utterly enamored of the freshness of this film. So far. But I've already had more laughs than I've had a long time (watching a slew of flicks where great actors were hired to do dreck with no apparent motivation).

I'm also a high school dropout, a college dropout (which means I've taken various tests of achievement and intelligence, the GED, the SATs and various other limiting, mind control efforts); fortunately I am now several decades old, and well beyond the reach of the academia nuts who currently crank our future fellow citizens out like Twinkies; i.e., old enough to have seen their results.

Hence, I get the premise, and I love these characters. I find this film vastly more entertaining than any Ocean's XX movie made after the Rat Pack got it right the first time. This is more fun than Hackers (and since I also spent years at IBM, yes, I loved that one, too; but I'm giving this a ten for the acting, the story, and the fresh handling of the genre).

If it disappoints in the end, I may come back and rate it again, but for now I'm laughing my ass off. Great commentary on our educational "bubble" system, great fun with each of the characters. (Especially Roy, I eagerly await his next scene. Though all these kids are good, and the dialog is exceptional.)

*******************************************

Okay, this previous post hasn't been posted yet, so now I can conclude: great stuff. I repeat, for the genre. Some of the best out there. And we'll see some of these kids later. But really, a great movie. Not necessarily a keeper, a watch again, for sure. Still a 10 for it's intended scope, and I'm still a critical bastard. Loved it.

Of course, this isn't great citizen kane style cinema, but this movie is fun to watch, especially if you are in the target demographic like me. This is a typical teen/college movie, minus the grossness of movies like American pie. If you liked "Better luck tomorrow" (also distributed by MTV films), then I think you will like this one. I have to say that "better luck tomorrow" was a much, much, better teen scam/heist movie, but this one rolls along merrily. The script isn't really well done, but it has a few good jokes, like "If they make it into a movie, I wonder who'll play me...I hope your hung like a horse." Scarlet Johansson is great, as always, even with this auto-pilot acting.(like in eight legged feaks, but tha's what I like about Scarlet. She switches from camp/kitch/crap to great movies without any difficulty) The movie is perfect for when you're way to stressed because of your exams at college, like me today.

The Perfect Score fmovies. Imagine, you failed your SAT test and your environment is pushing you so hard that you HAVE to pass for the retest. But, you're just not good enough. Or that the university you would like to go to requires a score that is way-beyond your capabilities.

What would you do? And if you decide to cheat, would you keep it a secret or would you share it with some people? In this movie, the secret leaks out and more people get involved in the plan: to steal the answers.

The diversity of characters in this movie often leads to funny situations or strange conversations.

The movie itself is a little predictable, but it stays nice. I would say, 7 out of 10.

The Perfect Score is one of those movies you would expect to be incredibly stupid. The premise is absurd: kids try to steal the answers to the SAT. However, I found myself enjoying this movie. The characters are likable and have good reason to cross the line to cheat on the SAT. I especially enjoy Erika Christenson (who I didn't recognize from her work in Traffic and Swimfam) as the girl who needs a high SAT score to get into Brown University. This movie shows the pressure that high school students have on standardized testing in general. Their grades may be good, but without a good score on this one test makes the difference in what college they can get into. I was not a fan of standardized tests in high school and I do not like them now. I think that dislike of these tests adds to the appeal the movie. I give this movie a 6/10. It is worth 90 minutes of your time.

There's lots of clichés and stereotypes to endure when watching a high school movie. For the most of it, The Perfect Score manages to avoid most of these clichés though the characters are a bit stereotypical. There's the brainy kid, the rebel, the stoner, the loser, the jock and the good guy. Hardly a breathtaking assortment of originals eh?

But their plan to steal the SAT scores and their interaction together are what make this movie worthwhile. The unimaginative marketing for this movie claims it to be Ocean's 11 meets The Breakfast Club. But the actors are carrying the movie, doing the best they can with weak material, rather than the 'wild' premise.

I especially liked Roy, the stoner and narrator as he got the most back story and had more a character arc than the rest of them. And it was pleasant to have the lovely, oh-so-cute Erika Christensen though I'm not too fussed about Scarlett Johansen (she looks like a teenage version of my mother!). A non-Shaggy, but still manic, Matthew Lillard has a small role as a concerned big brother.

You'll not remember it 5 minutes after the credits role but for a non-threatening, easy-going movie The Perfect Score fits nicely. You could do a helluva lot worse. And what else do you expect from an MTV movie?

The DVD is in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen with lackluster Dolby 5.1, though to be fair it mostly a dialogue-driven movie. There are a bunch of fluff features for those who care.