Ben Wekselbaum and Ginny Ryerson (Anna Kendrick) are fast-talking high school debate teammates in Plainsboro, New Jersey. Then Ben goes blank in the big tournament and Ginny is stuck with second place. In school, Hal Hefner (Reece Thompson) stutters terribly. His parents are separated and his brother is a kleptomaniac. He's struggling and then surprisingly Ginny recruits him for the debate team. She wants to mold him into her new partner.
Anna Kendrick's quick talking is hilarious. It's a relentless non-stop flow of thoughts. Reece Thompson is endearing. When he tells her that she's not an object of desire for pedophiles, her reply "That's the worst thing anyone has ever said to me" killed me. There is this aura of quirky indie that will either enchant the audience or annoying them. I could probably use less of it. Hal needs a better friend character. I would have loved to see Jonah Hill in that role. The movie doesn't quite work all the time when Ginny isn't with Hal.
Anna Kendrick's quick talking is hilarious. It's a relentless non-stop flow of thoughts. Reece Thompson is endearing. When he tells her that she's not an object of desire for pedophiles, her reply "That's the worst thing anyone has ever said to me" killed me. There is this aura of quirky indie that will either enchant the audience or annoying them. I could probably use less of it. Hal needs a better friend character. I would have loved to see Jonah Hill in that role. The movie doesn't quite work all the time when Ginny isn't with Hal.