Review by Caitlin Zeigler
Bernard Flannigan (Skyler Gisondo) and Veronica Krauss (Olivia Holt) are two high strung overachievers with very specific agendas in mind. When Veronica finds out she’s number two in her high school class ranking, she convinces Bernard to run for the school board. She wants him to run, so she can get rid of class ranking and he wants to do it, so he can get things done that only he cares about as well. They push themselves into politics going against the adults on the school board, while learning about each other. They realize they have a lot in common and right when they start to fall in love, they realize they are using each other.
Luckily, Bernard has his grandfather Oswald (Bruce Dern) and friends including the local newspaper editor (Kathleen Chalfant), postal worker Wesley (Daryl J. Johnson) and the local grocery store bagger (Nick Krauss) to help support and guide him along the way. Veronica’s mother Janet (Kristin Chenoweth) will help her put things into perspective, since Bernard and Veronica can’t seem to.
This film is a nice romantic comedy that isn’t for everyone. The story is set around teenagers, but they are so strict and uptight that they act like they’re elderly. It’s more of a smart, neurotic kind of funny film, so some people might like it and some people won’t. Everyone is great in this film and it feels like Bernard and Veronica are just younger versions of Oswald.
