As bitterness piles upon disappointment piles upon loneliness, Blue Car stalls under the weight of its emotional baggage.
Comment
05/22/03
Blue Car (2003)
81
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:85
Fresh:69
Rotten:16
Average Rating:6.9/10
Consensus: A cautionary tale that rings true.
Runtime: 88 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: Agnes Bruckner delivers an impressive, assured performance with BLUE CAR, an affecting coming-of-age drama from Karen Moncrieff. Bruckner is Meg, a beautiful teenager who is desperate to find... [More]
Starring: David Strathairn, Agnes Bruckner, Margaret Colin, Frances Fisher
Director: Karen Moncrieff
Reviews for Blue Car
I didn't like Blue Car, and the only thing I found appalling is how blatantly predicable and pseudo-daring the supposedly appalling stuff is.
05/22/03
A coming-of-age tale acted with such honesty, and directed with such quiet understanding of its troubled characters, that its nearly unrelenting grimness takes on a poetic quality.
05/16/03
From the rain-streaked windshield to the unaffected line readings from a stellar cast, there is not a shot in Blue Car that doesn't ring true.
05/16/03
Blue Car isn't an easy ride, but it's worth taking.
05/16/03
Easily my favorite American independent movie since You Can Count on Me.
05/16/03
A valuable cautionary tale.
05/16/03
Top CriticIts refusal to come alive as a film, rather than just a good piece of writing, ultimately strands its good intentions.
05/16/03
A beautifully crafted and painfully sincere movie that makes most dramas about teenagers seem about as real and relevant as American Pie.
05/16/03
Karen Moncrieff's evocation of the awkward, clashing relationships... and her clear-eyed look at the idealization of an inspirational teacher by a student in need of a daddy have an unsettlingly honest feel.
05/16/03
Thanks to Bruckner and Strathairn, who's queasy beyond the call of duty, this is one indie that resonates well beyond the end credits.
05/15/03
For the most part, Blue Car succeeds in fulfilling Meg's assignment to 'touch the hidden nerve.'
05/15/03
One of the rare female coming-of-age stories in which the overall sense of authenticity more than compensates for the narrative lapses.
05/13/03
It's rare that a first-time director demonstrates such a sure hand, but Moncrieff is the real deal.
05/09/03
A convincing piece of drama that makes teen angst look like a perfectly reasonable reaction to events.
05/09/03
The movie unfolds, wobbling between scenes that feel fresh and genuine and others that feel seriously overfreighted with ethical judgments.
05/09/03
Moody, thoughtful drama is a brilliant debut for new actress Agnes Bruckner and a triumph for veteran David Strathairn.
05/08/03
...perhaps slight of budget but full of heart, soul, and a ton of acting talent, all well stirred by a new director who has expertly transferred her story of family failures and teen dreams to the big screen.
05/07/03
The movie crams a hell of a lot of dysfunction into its 88 minutes . . . Rare are the movies that convincingly depict a small child going mad.
05/06/03
... this film is so smart ...
05/05/03
Latest News for Blue Car
April 14, 2005:
Actors Sign Up for a Taste of "Blood and Chocolate"
Annette Curtis Klause's "Blood and Chocolate" is being adapted for the big screen, courtesy of MGM/Sony. The Hollywood Reporter says its "about a teenage werewolf... More...
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