Movies: Rocket Science

Movies, in general, are not realistic. We don't want them to be. When a truly realistic movie comes along, like "Rocket Science," it throws the viewer for a loop.

The film is written and directed by Jeffrey Blitz (who also directed the hit documentary "Spellbound"). It tells the story of Hal Hefner, a stuttering high school student who deals with love and debate competitions as best he can. At first glance, "Rocket Science" seems to be aping quirky high school dramedies like "Rushmore":



Without giving too much away, let's just say that the story of "Rocket Science" doesn't cheat in the ways that most other movies do. There's no magic scene where Hal Hefner loses his stutter and becomes "a normal kid" (which would be insulting to people who live with speech disorders), but the way he deals with it in order to compete at the New Jersey debate championships proves that Hal's no dummy.

Rating: 8/10