Movie Review - Edge of Seventeen

Edge of Seventeen (2016)

Starring Hailee Steinfeld, Woody Harrelson, Kyra Sedgwick, Haley Lu Richardson, Blake Jenner, and Hayden Szeto

Directed by Kelly Fremon Craig

While it's certainly light on substance and not all that unique in its story, Edge of Seventeen works thanks to some cleverly written dialog by writer-first time director Kelly Fremon Craig and a grounded, realistic performance from Hailee Steinfeld as a loner high schooler dealing with a variety of teenage angsty problems.  As Nadine (Steinfeld) maneuvers through the rough road of being a teenager which carries with it fights with her widowed mother (Kyra Sedgwick) and a will-they-or-won't-they flirtation with classmate Erwin (Hayen Szeto), she's also placed in the the difficult position of her twin brother Darian (Blake Jenner) starting to date her best friend Krista (Haley Lu Richardson).  With the help of her caring, yet greatly sarcastic, teacher Mr. Bruner (Woody Harrelson), Nadine tries to come to grips with all that being a teenage entails.

The high school landscape wasn't nearly as treacherous for me as it seems to be for most cinematic teenage characters (this film being no exception), so I oftentimes find the neuroticism of films of this ilk lacking in grounded realism.  Somehow, though, that isn't an issue here as Nadine (who lost her father a few years prior) feels lived-in and believable.  Certainly part of the credit goes to Ms. Steinfeld whose roller coaster of emotions as Nadine successfully translates to the screen.  The other part of the credit falls to director-writer Craig who taps in to the teenage psyche without making things feel over-the-top.  With great performances all around from the ensemble -- there's really not a bad egg in the bunch -- Edge of Seventeen is a light-hearted, fun watch that deserves to be remembered as a solid addition in the "teen coming-of-age" genre.

The RyMickey Rating: B