The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

This film looks like it's going to be a stock, script-o-matic, type thing but manages to take nice twists in plot and dialog along the way, Admittedly, some of it is format but most of it is excellent writing. The best thing is the casting for the principles. The two of them deliver perfect performances. This would not have been easy because of some of the unevenness in the script. In parts, they are called on to do highly cliché lines and tears, which is hard to do without letting that sort of thing spill over into the unexpected and unusual parts of the film. They do this admirably and the film moves nicely. In fact, the somewhat cliché sections help the film by suggesting you relax and go along with a predictable format and then surprises you. There's no "didn't see that coming" ending, but you are kept from knowing the ending anyway until you get there. Highly recommended.

I rented this movie along with 'Elephant.' The two films are very different but obviously deal with the same subject (school shootings). I found the movie to be above average. In comparison 'Elephant' was better in my opinion. They are very different films but it seemed to me that 'Home Room' did what every other movie could have done. The cliché 'rich girl meets goth girl' idea did not really do it for me. I'm sick of 'odd couple' movies unless they have really good character development and are witty like say, 'Tin Men.' I didn't really feel the characters were developed interestingly enough. What I really liked about the movie however was the turn it took at the very end revealing how 'Alicia Browning' saved many more kids from being killed and how she had a baby die a year and a half earlier. I totally wasn't expecting that ending. Overall a well-made film with mediocre acting and mediocre dialog with a good ending.

While i was the video store i was browsing through the one dollar rentals and came upon this little gem. I don't know what it was about it but i just had a gut instic about it and wow was i ever right.The story centers around two girls who have just survived a school shooting. One of the girls is Alicia a teenage reble who is the only witness for the full attack and another is Deanna another survivor who survived a bullet to the head by some miracle. Thrown together by fate, they slowly begin a painful and beautiful display of healing and moving on.I just hate it when amazing movies fall through the cracks. Because wow what a performance by Busy Phillips and Erkia Christensen not to mention the rest of the cast! My only complaint is that the DVD was sorely lacking in special features. Oh and some of the jump cuts in the movie were kind of jarring. But all in all a excellent movie.

The industry dropped the ball on this. The trailer does not do the movie justice and when this opened it was on a hand full of screens. Had people had an opportunity to see this, work of mouth would have made it very successful. The 2 lead actresses each give great emotional performances that really draw you in to the story and especially the characters. I checked this out based on the rave recommendation Richard Roeper or (Ebert and Roeper) in his book. An example of a great film that never got fully released except on a few screens. Which gave it no chance to be seen. Some movies go to video quickly because they aren't that good. This is Oscar worthy and it's a tragedy on many levels that most will never even hear of it. Maybe via word of mouth it will gain a following on DVD or cable. If you haven't see this movie you should. Great performances of the 2 lead actresses make this movie. It could have just been another formulaic teen movie after school special but instead it stands up well to other note worthy films. Girl Interrupted comes to mind. If you like that you will like this. Both girls are in one amazing emotional scene after another without coming off as melodramatic. Even though Alicia is angry and Deanna is crying through most of the movie it is done is such a real way that they do not come off as stereotypical characters or as melodramatic. The movie will move you in many scenes and if you are an aspiring actor use these real performances as your school. Erica is even better in this than in Traffic. I hope both of these actors get more roles that utilize their talents as well and let them shine. See this movie and if you like, recommend to friends so it doesn't get lost among all the blockbuster crap that comes out every year. This movie was buried while Spiderman 2 tops records. What kind of word are we living in? AGHhh. So to make the world right again see this and recommend it.