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Bully

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Bully (2001)

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Reviews Counted:84

Fresh:43

Rotten:41

Average Rating:5.6/10

Consensus: With its lingering shots of naked teenage bodies, Bully feels more sordidly exploitative than realistic.

Runtime: 1 hr 53 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Bobby Kent (Nick Stahl) is not a nice guy. He beats up his "best friend" Marty every chance he gets, he abuses Marty's girlfriend Lisa, and he rapes Lisa's friend Ali. From director Larry Clark... Bobby Kent (Nick Stahl) is not a nice guy. He beats up his "best friend" Marty every chance he gets, he abuses Marty's girlfriend Lisa, and he rapes Lisa's friend Ali. From director Larry Clark (KIDS) and screenwriter David McKenna (AMERICAN HISTORY X) comes this gruelling thriller based on the true story of Bobby Kent, a bossy Florida teenager who was beaten to death by a group of his peers. There isn't a lot to do in the suburban Florida town that Bobby and his "friends" inhabit. They play violent shoot-em-up video games, they work at the Pizza Hut, they go surfing at the beach, and they cruise in their hot rods. But mostly, Bobby and his friends have lots of sex. The film is drenched in graphic shots of barely legal naked teenagers. (This has been Clark's favorite subject matter since his days as a photographer, as illustrated in his 1997 book TEENAGE LUST.) Sexual identity is an undercurrent in Bobby's story: he watches gay porn while he rapes Ali, and he forces Marty to dance with him at a gay club. Some of the other teenagers think that Bobby and Marty are a couple. But this is a minor issue. They decide to kill Bobby because he's a bully who has hurt and angered them; and because they're bored and desensitized to violence. In BULLY, Clark provides another hard look at the hard lives of American teenagers, in all their confusion. It isn't pretty. [More]

Starring: Nick Stahl, Bijou Phillips, Brad Renfro, Leo Fitzpatrick

Starring: Nick Stahl, Bijou Phillips, Brad Renfro, Leo Fitzpatrick, Rachel Miner, Kelli Garner, Michael Pitt

Director: Larry Clark

Director: Larry Clark
Screenwriter: David McKenna
Producer: Jordan Gertner, Chris Hanley, David McKenna
Studio: Lions Gate Films

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Reviews for Bully

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Larry Clark has an astonishing way of getting into the minds of teenagers.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
12/10/01
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

There's something troubling about a film which, on the one hand, wants to take a moral stance about a lost generation, and on the other relishes shooting the nubile flesh of its young actors.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
02/20/02
Tom Dawson
Tom Dawson
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Joins the list of great American films about killing

Full Review Source: UK Critic | comment Comment
03/10/02
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
UK Critic

A brutal, though darkly humorous film.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
10/30/02
Brian Walker
Brian Walker
ViewLondon

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment 1 Comment
12/30/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

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Full Review Source: Daily Mail [UK] | comment Comment
12/15/03
Jason Solomons
Jason Solomons
Daily Mail [UK]
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
03/03/02
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: FilmFour.com | comment Comment
03/25/02
FilmFour.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A brilliant film that fearlessly explores the lives of a group of aimless, middle-class Florida teenagers who plan to murder one of their friends.

Full Review Source: FilmsInReview.com | comment Comment
08/13/01
Victoria Alexander
Victoria Alexander
FilmsInReview.com

The result is that these astonishing, pathetic kids are so true that we believe them.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
07/16/01
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

Clark doesn't want to portray disaffected youth honestly; he wants to ogle young flesh.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
07/13/01
Rod Armstrong
Rod Armstrong
Reel.com

It feels like a peek into the closet of a pedophile and it's genuinely discomforting. And not for the reasons the film should be.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
07/20/01
Sean Axmaker
Sean Axmaker
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

A sad, bracing -- and often great -- film.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
09/28/01
Joe Baltake
Joe Baltake
Sacramento Bee

The film's naked plenitude (and pulchritude) casts suspicion on Clark's ulterior reasons for making the movie.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
07/30/01
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

Exposes us to the true horror of what's going on in these kids' lives.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
08/09/01
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

The shockingly intrinsic performances Clark gets from his cast bring the picture an energy and potency that's hard to deny.

Full Review Source: SPLICEDWire | comment Comment
07/16/01
Rob Blackwelder
Rob Blackwelder
SPLICEDWire

A bit long and repetitive.

Full Review Source: Blunt Review | comment Comment
03/07/04
Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Blunt Review

It’s an unpleasant viewing experience that remains captivating primarily because Clark has made it all look so real and because the murder plot is like a train wreck.

Full Review Source: Mike Bracken's Horror Films | comment Comment
10/17/03
Mike Bracken
Mike Bracken
Mike Bracken's Horror Films

It lacks a dramatic trajectory and emotional involvement.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
08/31/01
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
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Latest News for Bully

January 17, 2008: Brad Renfro: 1982-2008
Brad Renfro, star of The Client and Apt Pupil, passed away Tuesday of unknown causes. He was 25. More...

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