Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Don't listen to the negative reviews

A different way of telling a story

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

I don't know what's wrong with Bruce Willis. He seems to be starring in more and more of these 'straight to DVD' films these days. I can't see him needing the money while he's still making Die Hard films, so why does he do it? Here, like so many other (non cinema) films, he puts his face on the front cover of the DVD box and various promotional material to lure people like me into thinking he's in it for more than a few minutes. In truth, his part is little more than an extended cameo.The film is about a school that is entirely populated by stereotypes. The nerdy boy likes the hot girl. There are arrogant jocks and a host of other clichés. Then, when some test papers are stolen, the hot girl wants the nerdy boy to investigate for the school newspaper. So follows a sort of 'detective story' only with no actual detectives and in a school instead of a seedy criminal underworld. Plus the lead character narrates constantly. If he walks into a gym, he tells you he's going to walk into a gym then goes on to list every person taking part in a physical activity inside. Seriously, it was like watching a film with the director's commentary on! I was watching this film and it's never a good sign when you start wondering how long it's been on for. I guessed 45 minutes. I checked on the DVD timer and found I'd only watched 15 minutes. I'm afraid I couldn't last any more than 30 minutes of this.Maybe it got better after that and, if I did myself and the film a disservice, I apologise. But the opening half an hour was so dull, full of clichés and over-narration, I just couldn't bring myself to watch it any more.

This film is a real gem; I wasn't expecting too much from it, but was very pleasantly surprised. It's not as self-serious as the recent 'Brick' which also explores the noir-highschool concept (rather brilliantly, I might add), but still delivers appropriate amounts of drama and tension where it counts, as well as a dose of humor for good measure. The script is tight and interesting, if very slightly predictable (anyone with even a cursory knowledge of film noir could guess the direction that Micha Barton's character was going to take in the end), but the actors did a great job with their material, and the director kept the visuals interesting without going over the top on sex appeal or exaggerating the lifestyles of high school students; nobody drives a Porsche, nobody lives in a mansion, none of the girls are perfect barbie dolls, etc. The director deserves credit for staying away from these tropes and the characters benefit greatly for it. Overall, a very good movie, and very much worth watching.

ASSASSINATION OF A HIGH SCHOOL PRESIDENT is a big step above most of the teen movies that focus on potty mouth dialogue and absurd situations just to get laughs. Writers Tim Calpin and Kevin Jakubowski have come up with a script that is sometimes smart but ultimately full of holes in deciding where it wants to take the original premise of this high school movie. Director Brett Simon seems to sort of let the movie flow as it develops, preventing a tight telling of a story with potential. Bobby Funke (Reece Thompson, a promising new talent) is a nerdy newspaper reporter who is never able to finish a story. Student Body President/basketball star/ladies' man Paul Moore (Patrick Taylor) seems to have everything Bobby wants, including the attention of the school's most beautiful girl Francesca (Mischa Barton). As fortune would have it a crime happens - the SATs are stolen from the office of Principal Kirkpatrick (Bruce Willis playing Bruce Willis) and Booby is on the investigation and story, a story that points to Paul as the perpetrator. Bobby's nerdiness is transformed by his attention and by the affections of Francesca, and soon the school collapses under the cloud of the crime. It is how the 'crime' is inspected and resolved that ends the film. For Bobby Funke it is a matter of 'What price glory'. The cast is fresh and it is a pleasure to see some new faces with promise. Whether it is the director's or the sound mixer's fault, much of the dialogue is swallowed by the soundtrack, a problem thankfully solved by turning on the subtitles. This is a movie with promise from all involved and it will be interesting to see if it has an impact on teen flick quality. Grady Harp

I liked the detective wanna be feel…both intriguing and amusing. The movie was unnecessarily perverted, but as a movie seeking teen viewers it was probably trying to get on their level and to appeal to them. Since teens are perverted this makes sense.That's really all I can say about this movie. I chuckled a few times and I liked the detective feel and narrations. Other than that I wasn't too interested in the story. It wasn't too captivating but then again…I'm not a teen. Maybe this film is just out of my age range.The acting was what was expected in this type of film. I was kind of surprised with the acting because two of the main actors are Bruce Willis and Mischa Barton…need I say more? The best actor to me was the lead role, Reece Thompson. Never heard of him before but he played the part well. I felt like Willis and Barton were trying to hard to fit their roles. I can't blame them for this though. If the film was better I think the acting would have been as well.