The Edge of Seventeen
Director: Kelly Fremon Craig
Stars: Hailee Steinfeld, Haley Lu Richardson, Blake Jenner
Duration: 104 mins
Class: 15
KRS Releasing Ltd
Anyone who’s ever been 17 will likely squirm quite a bit in uncomfortable recognition during The Edge of Seventeen... capturing a slice in the life of awkward teen Nadine Franklin (Hailee Steinfeld) as she negotiates that oh-so-difficult transition to adulthood.
Nadine is a bit of a loner. She keeps herself pretty much to herself since the death of her beloved dad a few years before, while tolerating her frazzled mother Mona (Kyra Sedgwick) and resenting her perfect older brother Darian (Blake Jenner).
Thank goodness, therefore, for Krista (Haley Lu Richardson), Nadine’s best friend and anchor since childhood. The two of them support each other through the trials of late teen-hood and high school. But Nadine’s world crashes down around her ears when Krista begins to date Darian, an act she sees as a horrific act of betrayal. Yet, Nadine is going to have to learn the hard way that the world does not in fact revolve around her. And that if she wants to turn things around she is going to have to do it herself.
Less a coming-of-age story than a being-of-age story, The Edge of Seventeen marks the directorial debut of unknown screenwriter Kelly Fremon Craig who has produced a remarkably clever, moving and authentic script which does not put a foot wrong in its illustration of teen angst. Certainly, it’s about fraught parent-daughter relationships, sibling rivalry, first love, and betrayal. Yet, it explores those familiar themes without ever resorting to cliché.
A remarkably clever, moving and authentic script which does not put a foot wrong in its illustration of teen angst
Craig’s dialogue is sharp, raw and realistic and her characters well-drawn and genuine. Yet the ace up the writer/director’s sleeve is her honest characterisation of Nadine who she presents to us warts and all. Add to that Hailee Steinfeld’s performance, raising the character to even loftier heights.
The actress, who made such an astonishing debut in the Coen Brothers’ True Grit six years ago, shows especially true grit here, channelling with startling accuracy Nadine’s inner emotional turbulence and her penchant for doing the wrong things as she struggles to get those emotions under control.
Nadine is as annoying and obnoxious as she is warm and funny – yet, she is always sincere. When she stares at her reflection in the mirror, pleading desperately with herself to stop being so awkward and self-conscious, you feel her pain. When she sends a provocatively teasing text to the object of her affection and lands herself in a very compromising position, you want to yell at her for being so irresponsible.
You roll your eyes at her loud – and foul – mouth and oftentimes awful treatment of those who clearly love her and as she blows even the tiniest incident out of proportion, convinced the world is out to get her.
There are as many instances when you want to just shake her (oftentimes, after you recognise some behavioural traits in yourself from days of yore) as there are when you just want to hug her and offer her sage advice.
Much as Steinfeld carries the film on her shoulders, the supporting characters whose connection to her form a vital part of Nadine’s life are equally strong. Richardson makes for a real best friend, who won’t fall for Nadine’s emotional blackmail, yet continues to support her while standing her ground.
Jenner makes Darian very likable and empathetic, despite his so-called perfection. Sedgwick and Steinfeld proffer a fiery mother-daughter dynamic. One particular scene, where Nadine anticipates everything Mona is about to say, comes across as funny as it is frustrating. Kudos especially to Hayden Szeto as Erwin Kim, Nadine’s geeky but droll school friend and to Woody Harrelson in the beautifully-judged role of a teacher who calls out all Nadine’s bull and is instrumental in getting her to see the error of her ways.