Sophomore newspaper reporter Bobby Funke (Reece Thompson) becomes the star of his High School after he uncovers what happened to a stack of stolen SAT tests taken from stern Principal Kirkpatrick’s (Bruce Willis) office almost right out from under his very nose. But not all is as it seems, and even with the sexy and popular senior student Francesca (Mischa Barton) suddenly hitting on him Bobby begins to suspect the mystery goes deeper than anyone – including himself – ever expected.

CRITIQUE

Assassination of a High School President is a noir High School black comedy that would make a relatively pleasant double bill with Rian Johnson’s superior 2005 winner Brick. There’s a gumshoe voiceover, red herrings galore and a beautiful femme fatale, everything played for very dark laughs that hit more than they miss adding up to an entertaining diversion that, while not particular memorable, more or less hit the spot.

I do realize that’s not the greatest recommendation in the world, but as slight as the finished product is I’m not sure director Brett Simon or writers Tim Calpin and Kevin Jakubowski could realistically expect any more than that. Their film moves well, is nicely acted by its young cast (especially Thompson, showing a surprising range crafting a completely different teenage protagonist then was found in his outstanding 2007 effort Rocket Science), has a bravura supporting turn by an amusingly militaristic Willis and contains more than a few moments of wit making up for a relatively benign finally.

The middle portion is especially satisfying, and I love how Bobby both lets himself get swept up inside his newfound popularity while also doggedly chasing a truth he slowly comes to suspect will probably take it all away from him. I also appreciated that the filmmakers didn’t shortchange either their audience or their story, playing up many of the more unwholesome aspects of their noir plot strands and not beating around the bush with them trying to earn anything other than a R-rating.

Unfortunately, the film does lose a bit of steam towards the end. Also, the mystery’s solution isn’t exactly a shock and the way Bobby digs himself out of a rough and tumble situation is far too obvious and cliché. Don’t get me wrong, I was still okay with this resolution I just wasn’t satisfied with it, and if it weren’t for the solid first three-quarters or so I’m not sure I’d be as amenable to the final product as I ultimately am.

Side note, Assassination of a High School President is, like the excellent Nothing but the Truth, another victim of the Yari Film Group going bankrupt. All my reservations aside, this little independent should have gotten, deserved to have gotten, a theatrical release, and the fact it’s getting shuttled off straight to DVD without so much as a thank you ma’am or a how do you do is relatively depressing. Films like Simon’s deserve their chance at a wider audience, and it’s far too bad that a far too crowded marketplace and a badly mismanaged production company stopped this one from getting that opportunity.

THE VIDEO

Assassination of a High School President is presented in 2.40:1 Widescreen. Extremely well shot by M. David Mullen, I actually think this title would have made for an excellent blu-ray. As far as standard definition DVD’s go, however, I think Sony’s job here is pleasingly solid.

THE AUDIO

Available audio tracks include English (Dolby Digital 5.1) with optional English subtitles.

SPECIAL FEATURES

There are more extras here than I though there’d be, the majority of them surprisingly solid. These special features include:

• Audio Commentary with director Brett Simon and writers Tim Calpin and Kevin Jakubowski – Definitely the highlight of the disc, the three talk about all facets of the film’s production including dissecting some of the moments and scenes they all feel don’t quite work as well as they’d have liked them to.
• Alternate Opening Scenes – Fascinating look at the evolution of the film’s outstanding opening montage. Includes must-listen optional commentary from the filmmakers.
• Extended, Alternate & Deleted Scenes – Exhausting collection of scenes also with optional commentary, these go along way to showcasing just how many different ways the finished product could have gone. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

While not completely satisfying, Assassination of a High School Principal is a mostly enjoyable teenage noir fans of movies like Brick are sure to get a kick out of.