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Don't listen to the negative reviews

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

If you're looking for a classic 'slice of life' film, you've come to the right place. Middle Of Nowhere concerns the fortunes of a young girl hoping to attend college... only problem is, she's skint. In no small way thanks to her mother taking all her dough. So what better way to make up the difference than to become the driver for a teenage drug dealer? There are a whole mess of other problems besetting her too: The jealous little sister trying to act older. The man she loves lying about not being in another relationship. And the REAL reason your father committed suicide. Hearts will be broken, skeletons will emerge from closets... and could those tops get any lower?Sorry... lost my train of thought there for a sec. This film, is a heart, a simple tale well told, with the cast giving it their all and lotsa dramatic scenes to nail down your interest. These people are not wholly bad or good... they have set goals in life that others may seek to challenge, but for the most part don't succeed in derailing. We like them, we want the best for them... and these are signs of emotional investment. In other words, the movie works. A modest flick, moderately succeeds. That's all there is to it, really now... 6/10

Can you believe John Stockwell, director, from Galveston, is almost 50? I first saw him in the TV movie "Quarterback Princess" with Helen Hunt almost 30 years ago. I generally like his direction, and one of his better ones was "Blue Crush." His films have a very realistic feel to them and "Middle of Nowhere" feels very realistic. Shot in the Baton Rouge area, including some scenes on the Mississippi River levee, the story is about a group of teenagers trying to navigate into young adulthood. Eva Amurri (Susan Sarandon's real-life daughter) is Grace, almost 19 and intending on going to medical school. Grace is a very serious teenager, but is hampered by $35Thousand in credit card debt that her mother ran up in Grace's name after dad killed himself. So having no other choice she is working at the local water park for the summer. Mom is not very sympathetic or helpful to her cause. There are a number of serious mother-daughter issues.Anton Yelchin as Dorian Spitz has a different set of issues. He is adopted and at 17 really doesn't want to follow into the family business as an undertaker. He is working at the water park also, but for a different reason, as a cover for his real enterprise, selling high-quality cannabis to a variety of locals. In fact he has an ingenious cover, he shows up with Starbucks cups in a tray, at a home or a business or on a golf course, to deliver the product, collecting his money in the exchange.Dorian has been put on foot for the summer as a punishment so he befriends Grace, who has a car. She is very reluctant at first but, coming to the realization that she needs money quite a bit faster than the water park job can supply it, takes an interest in the enterprise. She goes into a partnership with Dorian, as his driver, and they will split profits 50:50.As we might imagine not everything goes smoothly, they get themselves into some tight situations, and boyfriend/girlfriend issues between the two of them and others also complicates things. And overall it is a good movie, a study of teenage characters trying to make it into young adulthood.Also good is Willa Holland, who was about 16, as Grace's 15-year-old sister Taylor Elizabeth Berry. As well as the mother, Susan Sarandon as Rhonda Berry. And the other boyfriend candidate, Justin Chatwin as Ben Pretzler.The golf course scenes were filmed at The Island golf community in Plaquemine about 14 miles from downtown Baton Rouge.

MIDDLE OF NOWHERE is one of those surprise films that appear to have gone direct to DVD - not because they are unworthy of theater showing but because they are thinking films rather than explosively entertaining/CGI/3D extravaganzas. The script (Michelle Morgan) is smart, the concepts are viable and refreshingly not overdone, the direction (John Stockwell) shows great respect for the talents of the actors, and the cast is as solid as could be assembled for a film about touchy subjects. The theme that is born at the beginning of this film and grows in importance right to the end is the parent/child conundrum: when is parenting adequate and what are the drivers for dysfunctional family units. Grace Berry (Eva Amurri, in a very natural and focused tough role) explains to a college scholarship counselor (Sharon London) that she needs financial aid to begin her higher education to become a doctor, but though she is a brilliant student, the counselor refuses to award a scholarship because of Grace's exceptionally bad credit rating. Distraught, Grace challenges her mother Rhonda (Susan Sarandon) when she discovers Rhonda has used Grace's name to open credit cards and has spent them to the limit. Grace needs big money to attend college and her summer job at the water park in town is minimum wage only. Also working at the water park is the happy-go-lucky Dorian (Anton Yelchin) who flirts with disaster, having found an 'extra job' selling weed to the rich folks of the city. After a lot of patter Dorian gently coerces Grace into being his driver (Dorian has no car, having been grounded for misbehavior by his grumpy uncle who is serving as relief for Dorian's adoptive parents), and the two begin a quality friendship that fills emotional and financial gaps in each of their lives. But the truth about Grace and Dorian's parents surfaces: Dorian was given up by his 15-year- old mother for religious reasons and has been placed with quasi-appropriate wealthy parents; Grace lives with the knowledge that her father committed suicide only to come to discover that the suicide was the result of discovering that Rhonda was (and still is) having an affair with his brother Bob (William Haze). Grace's discovery comes through a conversation with her Aunt Polly (Karen Bramen, in an excellent role for this new actress) and Grace's mother-favored younger sister Taylor (Willa Holland), and the revelation sets off a series of events that propels the story to an end. Yes, there are sidebars expected in stories of teenagers: Grace falls in lust with rich kid Ben (Justin Chatwin); Taylor rebels against her mother by cutting her hair thus ending her mother's obsession with Taylor's becoming a model and Taylor seduces Dorian; Dorian confronts his birth mother; there are fights where Dorian is injured and finds himself alone without family support. But without a sugarcoated finale, the film ends quietly, affirming the importance of friends - a kind of love than can replace gaping holes in family relationships. The movie truly belongs to Eva Amurri who proves she is becoming as fine an actress as her mother, Susan Sarandon. The film also allows Anton Yelchin to demonstrate a much broader range to his acting than he has been given before. The entire cast is excellent. This is a coming of age story - with far more attention being paid to the adult end of the developmental spectrum. Grady Harp

This was definitely a well acted movie. It had all the fixings; it made me laugh and even managed to make my eyes water. Sarandon is the household name, but Yelchin and Amurri steal the show. The story clearly revolves around them. They come from different worlds at first, but seem to come to an understanding after all is said and done. There are many different themes in this movie, and they all play a part in developing each character. However only the two main actors (Yelchin and Amurri) really have the chance to showcase their talents. Also, this movie made me realize that Yelchin maybe in the movie business for a long, long time.Definitely worth a watch. Enjoy.