Get Real

Often funny and relentlessly bittersweet, Get Real is the story of a barely-closeted English teenager and his clandestine affair with his school's star athlete. A coming-out parable set inside a rather generic high school angst dramedy, the film unsuccessfully attempts a balancing act between gay flick and teen flick, but comes off more like an unjustly R-rated afterschool special. Adapted by Patrick Wilde from his play What's Wrong With Angry? and directed by newbie Simon Shore, it stars mostly unknown Brits in cookie cutter roles which are re-animated by respectable, honest performances that almost make up for the predictability. Optional. (R. Blackwelder)