MEAN CREEK
[] (Three stars)
Solid indie. Running time: 87 minutes. Rated R (profanity, sexual references, drug and alcohol use). At the First and 62nd and the Sunshine.
‘MEAN Creek,” a chilling examination of ethical behavior among teens from first-time director Jacob Aaron Estes, caps one of the best summers in memory for independent movies.
Recalling sources as diverse as “Deliverance,” “The Heart of Darkness,” “The Lord of the Flies,” “River’s Edge” and “Stand by Me,” this thought-provoking thriller, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, is set in a bucolic section of Washington state.
When the slightly built Sam (Rory Culkin of “Signs”) is beaten up at school by the hulking George (Josh Peck), Sam’s older brother, Rocky (Trevor Morgan), comes up with a plan.
They invite the bully along on a boating trip to celebrate Sam’s birthday, planning to humiliate George by stripping him naked and stranding him in the middle of the river.
But it turns out the bully’s meanness is just a façade – he’s really a sweet guy with some serious problems.
The scheme is almost immediately ditched by Rocky and Sam, as well as two others along on the trip: Milly (Carly Schroeder), whom Sam has a crush on, and Clyde (Ryan Kelley), who’s been mocked for having two gay dads.
But the swaggeringly macho Marty (Scott Mechlowicz), whose father recently committed suicide, insists on going ahead with the plan – including a game of truth or dare that develops into an unforeseen tragedy.
At the movie’s heart is how the survivors deal with what happens.
The performances are excellent across the board – these kids look and sound like real teenagers, not movie stars.
Estes and his cinematographer, Sharone Meir, present a vision of paradise and innocence lost in this beautifully understated drama.
Many indie films about adolescents these days – like Gus Van Sant’s “Elephants” – are willfully amoral.
“Mean Creek” isn’t – and it’s the first indie since “Thirteen” that parents should make required viewing for teens.