Better than your average reality show

American Teen
Review by Nathan Weinbender

“Who were you?” asks the trailer for the new high school documentary “American Teen.” The Jock? The Geek? The Princess? The Rebel? The Heartthrob?

Who was I? Well, I certainly wasn’t a Jock, nor was I, by any stretch of the imagination, a Heartthrob. Certainly I wasn’t a Princess, and, although I wasn’t a conformist, I wouldn’t go so far as to call myself a Rebel. So, by process of elimination, that makes me a Geek. Not your typical geek, though: I wasn’t a social outcast, nor was I obsessed with video games or comic books, but I was in the marching band, which I suppose counts for something.

Had my senior year been the subject of a documentary, I could tell you it would have been a drag. “American Teen,” which follows five high school seniors in the small town of Warsaw, Indiana, is, on the other hand, unexpectedly engaging. Its subjects will no doubt seem familiar to anyone who has experienced (or is experiencing) their formidable teenage years, but it’s surprising how compelling they are.

Although the kids in Nanette Burstein’s film embody the simplistic titles that the ad campaigns assign to them, they are, above all else, fascinating. We come to care about them, we can relate with them, we understand their pain and discomfort. They begin as types and eventually evolve into human beings, intelligent and personable, but vulnerable and filled with trepidation.

Take, for instance, Colin, the Jock. He’s the star of the basketball team in a town that revolves around high school basketball. He wants to go to college, but his dad, who moonlights as an Elvis impersonator, can’t afford tuition unless Colin gets a scholarship. Colin, meanwhile, desperate to impress college recruiters, overexerts himself on the court and jeopardizes his team’s chances of winning the county championships.

Then there’s Megan, the Princess. She is the Most Popular Girl in School—she’s head of the student body, she’s on the prom committee, she’s a valedictorian, she’s homecoming royalty. She’s also mean, vindictive, manipulative and spiteful. We resent her until there’s a moment when we learn of a depressing moment from her past, a deep emotional scarring that she can neither comprehend nor cope with, and it causes her to lash out at everyone around her.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is Jake, the Geek. He plays clarinet in the band, has very few friends and has never been involved in a serious relationship. He wants, more than anything, to have a girlfriend, someone who loves him for who he truly is. We watch through parted fingers as he courts girls who have no interest in him whatsoever, and his experience with rejection is the most painfully relatable element of the film.

And there’s Hannah, the Rebel, easily Burstein’s favorite subject. She’s artistic, funny, observant, different. She hates Warsaw, hates not fitting in—she wants to flee to San Francisco and go to film school. She’s the girl who you never hung out with in high school, but who seems to be the most appealing person in your class come the ten-year anniversary.

She’s a bold, eccentric personality, but she’s also extremely fragile. Her estranged mother is clinically bipolar, and Hannah quietly wonders if she has inherited the disorder: When her boyfriend breaks up with her, she doesn’t leave the house for three weeks.

This all sounds like it could be fodder for a vapid MTV reality show, but “American Teen” is much more moving and insightful than it ought to be. There is some mandatory tension and a few minor conflicts between characters, but it all seems manufactured. What really resonates are the one-on-one interviews with the kids, which are very intimate, sometimes very moving. If the quality of a documentary is dictated solely by the quality of its subjects, this one is very good.

Grade: B+

A documentary directed by Nanette Burstein. PG-13; 95m.