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How to Deal (2003)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
18 July 2003 (USA) moreTagline:
Rule #1 There are no rules. morePlot:
A teenager (Moore), disillusioned by too many examples of love gone wrong, refuses to believe that true love exists. Then this new guy (Ford) comes along... full summary | full synopsisNewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Megan Fox on How to Deal With Bullies (From E! Online. 15 September 2009, 9:10 AM, PDT)
'Bad Boys' Good for Box-Office
(From Studio Briefing - Film News. 22 July 2003)
User Comments:
A pleasant surprise more (91 total)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Mandy Moore | ... | Halley Martin | |
| Allison Janney | ... | Lydia Martin | |
| Trent Ford | ... | Macon Forrester | |
| Alexandra Holden | ... | Scarlett Smith | |
| Dylan Baker | ... | Steve Beckwith | |
| Nina Foch | ... | Grandma Halley | |
| Mackenzie Astin | ... | Lewis Warsher | |
| Connie Ray | ... | Marion Smith | |
| Mary Catherine Garrison | ... | Ashley Martin | |
| Sonja Smits | ... | Carol Warsher | |
| Laura Catalano | ... | Lorna Queen | |
| Ray Kahnert | ... | Donald Sherwood | |
| Andrew Gillies | ... | Buck Warsher | |
| John White | ... | Michael Sherwood | |
| Alison MacLeod | ... | Sharon Sherwood |
Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug material, language and some thematic elements.Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
Philippines:99 min | USA:101 min | Argentina:102 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreCertification:
Brazil:12 | Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 (certificate #39293) | Australia:M | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | USA:PG-13 | Argentina:13Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Is a combination of the Sarah Dessen novels "Someone like You" and "That Summer" moreGoofs:
Miscellaneous: Towards the end, Halley and Macon are dancing in the hallway. Nurses are visible in the background, in the next shot, they disappear. moreSoundtrack:
Waves moreFAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (91 total)
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I almost considered passing up watching this one, but I'm glad I didn't. This movie has all the hallmarks of a bad afterschool special, actually four or five of them smashed together. But just when you think it's about to fall off a cliff of cliches, something unexpectedly intelligent happens. Just when it's about to turn into a tear-jerker, the director puts her camera, almost joyfully, above the rain to show everyone shielding themselves with the church program. Just when you think it's going to turn into a soppy love story, the characters flee from each other, scared out of their minds at the possibility. Just when you think it's going to be a soap opera, Mandy Moore acts her way out of the paper bag that people seem to pigeon-hole her into. You get the idea.
The actors all do well, especially Allison Janney, who puts a real edge to a role that could have easily been mush. I must admit, though, Peter Gallagher, usually a reliable guy, doesn't do much with his aging hipster role. The real joy here is Moore. She's got just enough stuff to hook you into the story, and she's just raw enough that she'll make you believe. And, yeah, the dialogue is corny here and there, but not outrageously so. I have to hand it to the director to keep everyone loose enough to pull off some of these lines, and to make the shots interesting enough for us to care what happens when they do.
The plot, which does have its convolutions and weird devices, is not nearly as interesting as Halley's growth as a character. It's basically a character piece wrapped in a teen romance. And Moore brings it all together.