High School Record – review

This offbeat and un-airbrushed mockumentary provides an appealing and accurate depiction of teenage uncertainty, says Femi Oshatogbe

HIGH SCHOOL RECORD (2005)

DIRECTOR: Ben Wolfinsohn

COUNTRY: USA

RUNNING TIME: 89 mins

ORIGINALLY released back in 2005, Ben Wolfinsohn’s off kilter indie comedy follows the efforts of Nicholas and his friend Susan. As part of Nicholas’s senior-year film project, they set about to capture the lives of six students who attend the eccentric and sexually forthright Ms. Farewell’s acting class.

High School Record managed to draw together numerous luminaries from the American alternative punk-rock scene, including members of No Age, Mika Miko, Lavender Diamond and The Minutemen. Principally told from a documentary perspective, it manages to create a hilarious and at times touching exploration of high school experiences.

The subjects of Nicholas’s project include Caleb, a social misfit and unconventional film maker who near the beginning of the film is working on a whimsical guide to children’s nutrition.His girlfriend, the terminally disaffected Sabrina, makes it clear that whilst she enjoys the more physical aspects of their relationship with him, she doesn’t – at least at first – appear to appreciate many of his more romantic endeavours. One of the reasons for that might be her crush on Eddie, the school’s resident womanizer, race-car enthusiast and the third documentary subject.

It focuses on the naivety and uncertainty of adolescence with an accuracy that leads to characters who are identifiable

Then there’s Erin, the health-obsessed popular girl of the school who dishes out fashion, beauty and health advice whether it’s appreciated or not. Perhaps one of the most endearing documentary subjects is Tomes, whose quest to find a girlfriend leads to some of films most amusing and painfully awkward encounters.

Much of the dialogue was actually improvised by the youthful cast, giving the film an added sense of authenticity and honesty which alongside the unpolished cinematography adds to the films breezy charm. Ultimately much of what makes High School Record such an appealing film, is rather than presenting a more edited, airbrushed version of high school, it focuses on the naivety and uncertainty of adolescence with an accuracy that leads to characters who are identifiable both through their flaws, pimples and all too familiar struggles.

Femi can also be found at  http://whitelikeheaven.com and @whitelikeheaven