Despite my suspicious attitude towards the majority of current mainstream film, lately I've found myself somewhat titillated by the commercials for this new Charlie Bartlett movie -- which appears to be an interesting concept about a high school student moonlighting as a novice therapist for his peers. (Mr. Salty has oft remarked that I'm inexplicably drawn to movies about teenage boys -- no comment.)After the first half dozen times I saw the television spots, I couldn't quite place where I had before seen the reasonably charismatic actor playing the title character. Finally, a quick consultation with IMDB tells me it's the kid who had a recurring guest role on "The Practice" a few years back, as the underage gay lover of a pedophile. Man, that kid was a great actor! (And I now remember having the same conversation with IMDB's search engine after seeing the spots for Alpha Dog a few months back.)
Interesting premise, skilled actor notwithstanding, what has finally tipped the scales for me is this fantastic ad campaign they're running. It's like they knew I was a sucker for mod/60's design. The simple, monochromatic color scheme? Helvetica Black? (For the love of God!) And the hand lettered typography in the illustration? Love. It. The faux folding and aging of the poster is an interesting touch, but I think I could do without it. All in all, still a fantastic piece -- the kind of stuff that inspired me to get into the field in the first place, before I had my drive and enthusiasm beaten the hell out of me.
Update: This review suggests that Charlie Bartlett was likely inspired by Harold and Maude -- A.K.A. my favorite film ever. The excitement is growing!
