A rather tepid and annoying coming of age story, Gavin Wiesen’s The Art of Getting By doesn’t really engage us in the way watching young people finally beginning to figure out their place in the world should. The actors are fine, and the movie does well enough with its limited budget to tell its story, but it’s not a particularly interesting story, and it certainly isn’t told in a way that makes us care very much about its central characters.
The Art of Getting By (Blu-ray)
Directed by Gavin Wiesen
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Year: 2011
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 1080p AVC codec
Running Time: 83 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English
Subtitles: SDH, French, Spanish
Region: A
MSRP: $39.99
Release Date: November 29, 2011
Review Date: December 1, 2011
The Film
2.5/5
George Zinavoy (Freddie Highmore) has obvious artistic gifts, but he’s so disaffected from the world around him that he really doesn’t care about anything or anyone. He slacks off every assignment given him during his senior year and makes no bones about not caring whether he graduates or not. When he meets Sally (Emma Roberts), he begins to feel a tinge of belonging, and meeting successful young artist Dustin (Michael Angarano) further encourages him that his art might be a possible path for him to pursue. But there are emotional quagmires all around him: his mother (Rita Wilson) and stepfather (Sam Robards) are having problems, Sally sends mixed signals that George is hesitant to act on, pressure is being put on him at school to do something, and Dustin is showing sexual interest in Sally that George isn’t happy about.
Director Gavin Wiesen’s script hasn’t presented us with characters that are easy to like or care about. George prides himself about his being a slacker (and there’s no good reason he isn’t playing “the game” of school being a means to an end), and Sally continually tells George how weird he is which isn’t always clear if the meaning is sincerely affectionate or a criticism. Director Wiesen spends a fair amount of time showing us George’s artistic ability (he’s very talented and quite witty in his doodling) but no time in explaining how George could have gotten to be a senior in high school without doing anything or not being ambitious enough to see if there was any kind of demand for his art. If you’re going to have a slacker as a main character, you owe it to your audience to give him character traits that will help the viewers maintain some kind of interest in him. George displays no outward charm, no sense of fun (unless cutting school qualifies), and despite holding his temper when one adult after another confronts him about his lack of concern, no sense of purpose. And the tentative love story isn’t very involving either despite the director’s rather desperate attempts in the later reels to find some poignancy in it. By that point, we’ve ceased caring.
The cast is made up of strong actors both young and less young. Freddie Highmore doesn’t display a hint of his native accent in becoming this believable New Yorker, but the performance otherwise lacks spirit and drive. Emma Roberts is lovely, but her character lacks development leaving the actress rather high and dry time and again. Michael Angarano actually shows the most sparkle of the younger actors as the young artist who seems to have a firm command of his personal and professional lives. Rita Wilson has some excellent moments as George’s befuddled mother grappling with the frustrations of an uncommitted son and an unfocused husband. Sam Robards, almost always an asset to any production, doesn’t get enough scenes to develop his stepfather character thoroughly (he seems the most interesting of the adults on display, and yet we know the least about his problems). Blair Underwood as the school principal, Alicia Silverstone as George’s English teacher, and Elizabeth Reaser as Sally’s promiscuous mother all have moments in which to shine, and all make the most of them.
Video Quality
4/5
The film has been presented in its theatrical aspect ratio of 2.40:1 and is offered in 1080p resolution using the AVC codec. Sharpness is overall very good in the transfer with better than adequate details in close-ups and offering a nice sense of the New York City locations. Color is adequately saturated if a little dull, and flesh tones are natural. A few scenes shot in darkly lit rooms display a detailed warmth and visual appeal that is at odds with much of the movie. Black levels are also above average. The film has been divided into 20 chapters.
Audio Quality
4/5
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound mix features some decent ambience of New York City presented in the fronts and rears, and Alec Puro’s music and a selection of pop hits give the film its strongest surround sound possibilities. There’s some strong bass in a couple of the songs on the soundtrack well delivered to the LFE channel. Dialogue is nicely recorded (with expert ADR work in noisier locations) and has been placed in the center channel.
Special Features
3/5
The audio commentary is by writer-director Gavin Wiesen, and it’s a start and stop affair. He mentions actors and locations as they come up but otherwise has little of interest to say as he rudimentarily comments on making the film on a tight budget.
“New York Slice of Life” is a 2 ½-minute vignette featuring co-stars Freddie Highmore and Emma Roberts along with director Gavin Wiesen commenting on how great it was to film in New York City. It’s in 1080p.
“On Young Love” offers 2 ¾ minutes on the love story presented in the movie commented on by the same two co-stars and director. It’s also in 1080p.
“Fox Movie Channel Presents In Character” featuring actor Freddie Highmore discussing his character and his acting techniques in achieving what he wants in a film in this 4-minute featurette presented in 480i.
“HBO First Look: The Art of Getting By” is a 12 ¼-minute puff piece on the movie featuring co-stars Highmore, Roberts, Michael Angarano, and Rita Wilson praising their director along with director Gavin Wiesen discussing the origins for the film’s story, the casting of the principal roles, and the location shooting for five weeks. Much of the interview material here is also in the previous featurettes described above presented in 1080p.
The film’s theatrical trailer runs for 2 ¼ minutes in 1080p.
The disc offers 1080p promo trailers for The Descendants, Another Earth, and the Fox World Cinema series.
In Conclusion
2.5/5 (not an average)
It’s hard to feel something for characters who in the grand scheme of things don’t really have much to worry or complain about except for “finding themselves.” With such a weak premise, it’s no wonder that The Art of Getting By plays so lackadaisically. For fans of the actors, at least the Blu-ray presentation is just fine and may make a passable rental for those who are curious.
Matt Hough
Charlotte, NC
