2:37 (2006)

Average

If you are looking for something predictable and embarrassingly stereotyped, then this film is not to be missed. Features so many cringe-worthy moments that I almost yelled out loud at the stupid characters. Although, I think this is kind of the aim of the movie in general. So, in that sense they have fully achieved their goal!

A lame, manipulative and irritatingly inept ripoff of Gus Van Sant's "Elephant". Good performances from most the amateur kids, but the director is a charlatan.

This film made me scared for my daughter when she goes to high school hell! Kids are so nasty

Not convinced - some really challenging subject matter and a really harrowing sub-story. However, the disconnectedness between the stories meant that when the final scene occurs one is left scratching one's head and wondering who/why/huh?

For more enjoyable time, visit your dentist.

yawn

Good storyline , bit tedious and slow in parts but all the same not a bad movie to watch.

This is an exciting ozzie made movie, gr8 themes, gr8 acting, and possibly a new 'Heath Ledger' in the guy called Sean. up beat, strong adult themes, not to the prissy type, open-minded people only, lol.

Karan G. you are right, i went to school with the guys sister and he told us about his hurdles of making the movie. havent watched the movie yet, looking forward to it!

A very sad and moving film would be a great film for high school students.

Poetic, realistic, disturbing, powerful.

Don't expect to come away from this one feeling all sunshine and buttercups. This is a raw, and all too real portrayal of the issues young people in Australia are now dealing with on a far too common basis. Highly recommended.

This is a very good and very well acted movie although some of the scenes are disturbing and a lot of people will be upset by them. Definitely not for the squeamish.

This is Bullying together with sex in a school of so called mature macho boys and sexy girls, is this a true indication of how todays school life in this age group carry on, I hope not, anyway, not here in Australia!!! Who knows.

absolutely loved it, kept me guessing the whole way through but gave you just enough to work out exactly what was happening right before it happened.

I liked the challenge of following the separate tales and wondering who would be the one at the end. I also enjoyed the filmmaker taking us through the events from different perspectives.

Quite depressing really!

Painful acting, terrible script. A really, really poor attempt at replicating Gus Van Sant's ELEPHANT - a far superior film.

Quite emotional, I really got into it

Excellent movie. Very true of teenage life for a lot of kids. Very sad. Special features are a must.

I read some reviews of this movie before I watched it and I felt like many other viewers at the end - cheated! The acting was fine but we didn't really care enough about the characters.

Not a movie movie - more of a bit of a movie documentary. Thought provoking though & I enjoyed it. If you have teenagers that you think are doing well & would never try drugs, etc etc - YOU NEED TO WATCH THIS!!! I was on the phone to my neices the second after it finished. Actually EVERY PARENT SHOULD WATCH THIS. It shows that no matter what it looks like on the outside of your child & how they're dealing with things that some of us have kids that are like ducks - cool on the top but underneath they're paddling like crazy just trying to find a reason to stay alive!

Quite good but a bit depressing.

Incredibly thought provoking and essential viewing for parents of teenagers and teenagers. So many messages within the film - brilliant direction and a movie Australia should be proud of.

This is a sad and harrowing film - well worth watching if you have teenagers in today's society.

A great Australian film. Worth a watch as long as you are not after something that's up beat.

The ending although done well, is by no means the main thing that you'll walk away after watching this movie - the whole film will continue in your thoughts. The storylines are gritty and edgy. A great film to show angst ridden teens or if you're in the mood for some hard drama without the cliches.

Slow moving. One wonders why a movie is made about 6 teenagers with various problems because it is so depressing. I could only watch about half the movie as it was just too depressing. All the characters are stereotypes including the sportsjock airhead. If you feel like a bout of depression, this is the movie for you.

Thought it was fantastic if not a bit harrowing.Im glad im not a teenager anymore

Good movie about the complicated lives of a group of high school students...but who is behind the door???

An intriguing movie that obviously has a few points to make. The opening scene makes you want to watch to the end to see where its going. Started out slow but as the storyline progressed it became obvious that there were plenty of issues and demons to be faced. Low budget but well acted. A good one for the teenagers of today.

Not my kind of movie

"Babies don't come from babies", Keith Jarrett said when he meant that great art isn't inspired by other art but by life itself. Director Thalluri is obviously infatuated with Gus Van Sant and more specifically "Elephant", of which 2:37 is an embarrassing pastiche. The school, the parallel points of view, the moody light, the student's story about a massacre, etc. How much more derivative can you be without breaking the law? But all this could have been forgiven. Other great directors have copied shamelessly, to create something better or at least equally entertaining. But this umpteenth Australian case of the emperor's new clothes is boring as hell. The best five minutes are the opening scene and this is indeed great cinema: a promising naturalistic build-up of suspense, leading to the discovery of a student's suicide. But the student is not shown in that opening scene and the whole movie's anticipation (or lack thereof) hinges on that single question: "Who died?" For most of the 98mins running time, the filmmakers are trying to outsmart the audience, ultimately leading to a twist nobody could have possibly seen coming. 2:37 is like a bad whodonit, where that one totally uninteresting character we haven't seen for most of the movie suddenly turns out to have motive and weapon. In itself it might have worked, if only the screenwriter would have made the least effort to entertain or excite us along the way. Instead we are witnessing a never-ending tirade of profanities and artful but empty cinematography. I wasn't impressed either by the performances of the army of young and gorgeous actors. But you can't blame them with this poor material. There are some very basic screenwriting rules such as: "you must not cheat the audience". But I suspect Thalluri has never heard this nor any other common sense principle about storytelling. You break those rules at your own risk. And the poor performance of the film at the box office has yet again proven that beginning filmmakers should not try and be smarter than their peers, let alone smarter than the audience.

Slightly quirky, gritty, big impact finish and extremely well edited and directed. I was impressed.

A brilliant, not too stay exceptional first film. Very good bit of film making.

While I found the ending to be anticlimactic and a bit lackluster (plus being an illogical scene), the rest of the movie is fantastic! The interviews, characters (particularly Melody) and subplots are done extremely well. Be prepared for a great movie with a bit of a disappointing end.

Not a bad movie, tackles some important issues, when other movies aviod doing this. Not to be watched if you enjoy a movie with a happy ending.

If you enjoy teenage agnst and issues you'll enjoy this one. The beigger story revolves around a day at school and the intertwining lives of several students. The story chops and changes between different points of view with a very dramatic ending.

Brilliant effort from first time director/writer who was only 21 years old at the time of production. Has coaxed some excellent performances from his cast. Very real & proudly Aussie.

contemporary schooling..?

i didnt like it

depressing and disjointed.

Excellent work by all, so too often films about the truth go by the wayside and get forgotten, so we can all live happily ever after! But more often than not we actually live happily from time to time. We probably all know some one who has taken there own life, and the fact that we didn't know it was coming (and in some cases told ourselves "they'll be right". This is an extremely thought provoking film that tackles head on the turmoil of adolescence and cruelty we inflict on one another.

I wouldn't bother ... this movie more annoyed me than disappointed me. Cry, sook, silence and then ... cry some more.

an ok film. its never what you think. most were predctale.

Good concept, Graphically i think it went too far, I felt sick. I dont really usually get too fussed with blood etc but because it seemed so real is why it got to me.

Fantastic, sometimes its those without the seemingly major issues that have the real story. Watch it.

very disturbing

Brilliant ...

If it's raining and you have no other 'inside' activities to do you could think about it but I'd rather clean the toilet.

Loved this movie! Deals with some confronting issues with a shocking conclusion - Not for the faint-hearted, but a must for those who like raw drama!

Borrowing heavily in style and substance from Gus Van Sant?s Elephant, Thalluri?s debut feature is a passionate, provocative and sensitive examination of the complexity of teenage life in the new century. Has been criticised for its near-plagiarism and, more widely, for its graphic portrayal of suicide which, in the view of the classification board, may encourage similar acts: such a view is lunacy. A more sustainable criticism would relate to its deliberate audience manipulation, but then it?s cinema we?re watching. Brilliant performances (with one or two exceptions) from inexperienced cast members; shot in Adelaide.

Too overly reminiscent of Gus Van Sant's ELEPHANT, but still a shattering dissection of Aussie high school life. Manages to pack every social taboo into its compact running time and herein lies the problem: you get the impression the writer is working from a checklist rather than forming an organic story. Leads to an incredibly graphic, unsettling climax; not for the squeamish!

Enjoyed this and the twist at the end.It's not who you think!

An interestin mockumentary style movie. Kept you guessing until the end who the person behind the door was.

The story about how this film was made is almost as good as the film itself. Not one to see if you want something light with a happy ending. Definitely one to see if you like films that tackle real issues with honesty. I found it profound. 'Breakfast Club' for this generation.

saw this at the movies and thought it was a little bit terrible, sorry teresa! if you feel like watching this, watch somersault instead.