This movie was especially disappointing because the IDEA of it was a fine one. I hoped to see, in at least a little depth, how different kids and their families related to this rather odd version of American ultra-competitiveness. I would imagine that some of the young people are truly obsessed, some choose this as their only available route to distinction, others do it as a lark, and still others because they're good at EVERYTHING. Similar diversities I'm sure exist among the parents and coaches. I think the decision to present each contestant's background story seriatim was a bad one: it led to a great deal of redundancy and eventually boredom. It would have been interesting to learn, also, how each subject fared after he or she was no longer eligible for spelling bees -- but of course that would have meant delaying release of the film. Overall a superficial and unsatisfactory job.
Review of Spellbound
