There are those who seem to deserve whatever happens to them. George is a bully. He's been held back in school, so he's older and bigger than the other kids and he bullies them, especially Sam. Sam's girlfriend Millie asks Sam the question quoted above. Sam just looks at her, never saying “yes,” but also never saying “no.”

Sam's older brother and his friends plan a way to get revenge on George. The plot involves a boat trip down a river. But as we learn more about George, we begin to understand a little bit about why he acts out. We may even begin to have some sympathy for George, but he continues to push everyone's buttons. Pushing buttons creates animosity, and that animosity gives him some sense of control over his world, even if it is a destructive force.

There are loads of films where viewers are invited to relish the revenge that is exacted upon someone as vile as George. But Mean Creek doesn't glory in the revenge, instead we are shown a much darker side. When the revenge comes, we do not welcome it; we are ashamed. Is there a qualitative difference between bullying a bully as opposed to what the bully does to others? What is an "adequate measure of revenge," and what is too far?

Writer-Director Jacob Aaron Estes was awarded a Nicholl Fellowship from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for this script in 1998. It marks him as a fresh young talent. This film gets him off to a wonderful start. This is a very modestly priced film, and has the look and feel of a low budget film, but it delivers a great artistic return for the small investment.

One of the most striking things about the film is the near total absence of adults. We are put directly into the world of these children. Within the film, there is also a significant absence of some important adults in the lives of the children. Some of the children come from broken homes, some have experienced deaths of parents, some we never quite know about. But throughout the story, they rely on themselves for every decision they have to make. And eventually, those decisions become very important, and deal very clearly with right and wrong. Even as they speak about ethics, they are making their choices for right or wrong on their own. They do not seek the help of the adults in their lives.

This gives the story a bit of the feel of Lord of the Flies, in which a group of well-mannered schoolboys become stranded on an island and revert to a cruel and violent nature. As in Lord of the Flies, the "innocence of childhood" is in stark contrast to what they do. (Well, these kids aren't that innocent, in fact, we don't want to see what they are capable of.) The natural setting of the film as they travel down the river adds to this feel. But these children do not completely lose their moral compass. They do know what is right and what is wrong. The difficulty comes in doing what they know to be right.

There is a section of the film, after a key dramatic action, in which we spend a good deal of time just looking at the children and their responses. There is no dialogue, just the shock that they register in their faces and body language. This goes on so long that viewers begins to feel uncomfortable because we sense that we are looking in on something so intimate that we need to turn away. That sense of discomfort helps to bring us even more deeply into the spiritual and psychological trauma that these children are experiencing.

One of the key elements in this film is forgiveness. How do we forgive others for the terrible things they have done? How do we come to grips with a past that has hurt us, if there is no way to address that hurt? And most importantly, how do we forgive ourselves for things we have done?

Mean Creek will probably be well below the radar for many moviegoers (it's being shown on only 23 screens nationwide as this review is being written). It could prove, though, to be one of the most compelling stories we see this year. Searching for it would be well worth the effort.

BLOG