Blue Car
Blue Car | |
---|---|
Directed by | Karen Moncrieff |
Written by | Karen Moncrieff |
Produced by | Peer J. Oppenheimer Amy Sommer David Waters |
Starring | David Strathairn Agnes Bruckner Margaret Colin Frances Fisher |
Cinematography | Rob Sweeney |
Edited by | Toby Yates |
Music by | Adam Gorgoni |
Distributed by | Miramax Films |
Release dates |
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Running time | 96 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $1,000,000 |
Blue Car is a 2002 American drama film directed and written by Karen Moncrieff. It was the first film she directed and wrote.[1] The film stars David Strathairn, Agnes Bruckner, Margaret Colin, and Frances Fisher.
Plot[]
Megan is a teenage gifted writer living in the Dayton, Ohio area. She has been abandoned by her father and neglected by her mother, who works 12-hour days and goes to school at night, leaving Megan to babysit her younger sister, Lily. The girls' father does not pay child support, causing financial strain in the household.
Lily has serious emotional problems; she cuts herself, refuses to eat, and speaks about becoming an angel. After being checked into the psychiatric ward of a hospital, Lily kills herself by jumping out of an open window as she tries to "fly". Meg finds solace in her English teacher, Mr. Auster, who claims he is passionate about writing a novel. He becomes a comfort to Megan, and encourages her to enter a poetry contest, which is later followed by one-on-one poetry tutoring.
After winning the local round of the competition, Megan wants to compete at the finals in Florida during spring break. With her mother unable and unwilling to fund the trip, Megan resorts to stealing and is barely able to make it to Florida.
A closer, pseudo-sexual relationship develops between Megan and Mr. Auster. The two run into each other outside the hotel that is hosting the poetry competition and go to a hotel room, where Megan reluctantly has sex with Mr. Auster, who stops after realizing that she is not comfortable with the situation. After this, Megan realizes that Mr. Auster has not written a novel at all, and that it was all just a ruse to impress her. After writing and delivering a brand new poem subtly denouncing Mr. Auster, Megan walks out of the competition. Later, back home, she decides to live with her father, riding away with him in his blue car.
Cast[]
- Agnes Bruckner as Megan Denning
- David Strathairn as Auster
- Margaret Colin as Diane
- Frances Fisher as Delia
- A. J. Buckley as Pat
- Regan Arnold as Lily
- Sarah Buehler as Georgia
- Dustin Sterling as Rob
- as Dad
- Wayne Armstrong as Don
Release[]
Blue Car was released on DVD on October 14, 2003 in the United States and Canada.
Critical reception[]
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 81% based on 86 reviews, and an average rating of 6.9/10. The website's critical consensus states that the film is "a cautionary tale that rings true."[2] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[3]
References[]
- ^ Holden, Stephen (May 2, 2003). "Blue Car (2002) FILM REVIEW; Teacher and Prodigy, Along With Need and Lust". The New York Times.
- ^ "Blue Car (2003)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
- ^ "Blue Car Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
External links[]
- Blue Car at IMDb
- Blue Car at AllMovie
- Blue Car at Box Office Mojo
- Blue Car at Metacritic
- Blue Car at Rotten Tomatoes
- 2002 films
- English-language films
- 2000s teen drama films
- American teen drama films
- American films
- Films about educators
- Films about writers
- Films directed by Karen Moncrieff
- Films about scandalous teacher–student relationships
- Films about child sexual abuse
- Films about suicide
- Films set in Ohio
- 2002 directorial debut films
- Miramax films
- 2002 drama films