FEBRUARY 29, 2008 - VOL. 1, ISSUE 4

In high school, I had a friend who had a bad stutter. Every time someone put pressure on him, his stuttering intensified into an inaudible series of grunts. While calm, it fluctuated between a normal dialogue to a stammering babble. I used to tease him about it. It's probably one of the worst things I have done to another human. The more I, and the rest of our friends, pressed him, the more he choked up. Rocket Science is a reminder of the challenges we face during our ripening ages.

The film, directed by Jeffery Blitz, begins with a kiss. Two teens rip at each other's lips, while a high school debate is going on in front of them. As Ben Wekselbaum, the best debater in New Jersey, loses his voice, Hal Hefner's father leaves his family and files for divorce. Love has lost its language. Hal drudges forward through his freshman year, until, at an Abraham Lincoln seminar, Hal is forced to get on stage and speak in front of the school. This should be relatively easy for Hal, except anytime Hal wants to say something on command, he can't. Hal stutters to the point that if he is nervous, one cannot understand him. He tries to bellow out to his classmates, but only um's, uh's, and partial words leave his mouth. It's as if there was a crack in his vocal pattern much like a record.

It is hard to watch. But I am glued to the screen. It is like having to look at an automobile accident. My stomach churns each time another syllable bubbles from his lips. I don't know if I should be crying from laughter or regret for being such a sordid human. Rocket Science allows me, a flawed person, to experience what it like to be another flawed person. The movie is a holistic representation for being different.

After Hal's failed attempt, the school's new head debater, Ginny Ryerson, asks him to become her apprentice. She tells him that disabled kids have the most fire inside of them, and make the best debaters. She trains him, and at their first mock debate he stumbles. I am reminded of my development into an adult. Hal is in the cocoon stage. Each um makes me twist with an uncomfortable delight. He can't order pizza at the cafeteria, but joins the debate team to talk to the girl of his dreams. Hal sets himself up for failure, which should be funny but it isn't because I am constantly reevaluating myself as I laugh. Why are other people's hardships comical? Am I so insecure with my abilities that I need to prey on those inferior? It is sad that Hal's garbled language tickles my funny bone.

He then runs out of the classroom into his hiding spot, the janitor's closet. Ginny comes after him, and they kiss while standing next to the mop bucket. Love erupts from the fibers of Hal's soul, and this passion drives him to become a full-fledged debater. As Hal's transformation into man hood begins, Ginny transfers schools to join the state’s other top debater. Hal is left with his only vice, his brother's stolen whisky and the adjacent neighbor's window. He folds into his depression only to explode by hurling a cello through her living room window as she pulls up in her new boyfriend's car. Hal says, without a hint of a stutter, "There's a cello in your house now." The perfect response from our blossoming hero. Ginny was wrong about one thing, having a handicap doesn't fuel the emotional fire but love does.

After this feat of strength, Hal employs Ben as his debating partner. Hal captures my heart and Ben's by saying, "It's one of those two, love or revenge, I'm not really sure which one. But it's one of those two that made me throw a cello through somebody's window, so you figure it out." His misfortunes build into two raw human emotions. Love or Death. How courtly. Shakespeare himself, the king of courtly love, would be happy to see Hal fight his way into the state debate finals. This struggle between love and death is the propelling agent that pushes Hal from childhood to adulthood. The decision between love or death is the awkward teenage years. Hal doesn't have an epiphany about his true identity until the tragedy of life hits. Hal and Ben's home school application is revoked and thus they are booted out of the competition. Both boys have been preparing for a month at Ben's home, and they tried to say both were home schooled, which they are not. Desire and hatred fuels Hal to finally lash out at Ginny, thus standing up for himself. Hal thwarts his handicap, and takes control of himself and his world.

Loneliness and abandonment forces Hal to call and reconnect with his father after the tournament. Hal finally speaks up for what he wants. He asks his father what is the meaning of love and life. His father declines to answer and Hal asks him again. After being defeated, Hal grows into a stronger man. It is the coming-of-age story of a boy realizing his voice within this world.

The movie's downfall is its narration. A third-party narrator, who has no attachment to the characters ruins the most dramatic moments of the movie. At the end, when Hal finally is able to order a slice of pizza, the narrator tells us that Hal has received his voice and that life will be good from here on out. The narrator wraps the story into a nice little bow, and then presents it to the audience as an ending. I can't figure out why the movie is narrated. Maybe since Hal can't speak very well, the narrator has to alert people of his emotional state.

Hal is the representation of the struggle to be a human in transition. I guess as I was thrust into the teenager years, self-conscious and awkward, caused me to lash out at my stuttering friend. He was nothing more than Hal Hefner. I can't take back my teasing, but, as Rocket Science shows us, I can strive remember what it was like to be different and not repeat my mistake.