Candy Jar
Candy Jar is a 2018 American comedy film directed by Ben Shelton and starring Sami Gayle and Jacob Latimore. The screenplay concerns a dueling high school debate champion duo who are trying to realize their plans to get into the colleges of their dreams. The film was released on April 27, 2018 on Netflix.[1]
| Candy Jar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Ben Shelton |
| Produced by |
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| Written by | Chad Klitzman |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Ryan Leach |
| Cinematography | Topher Osborn |
| Edited by | Kayla Emter |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Netflix |
Release date |
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Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Plot
In the principal's office of Hemlock Prep Academy, Lona Skinner internally monologues about her hate towards Bennet Russell, her fellow debate club member. They both want to be president of their two-person club as it would look good on their college applications; Lona wants to go to Harvard and Bennet to Yale. Ultimately, the principal declares them both co-presidents, despite both their arguments.
At the debate tournament, Lona's mother, Amy and Bennet's mother, Julia, act passive aggressive towards each other. Both Bennet and Lona make it to finals, and are declared as co-champions, as they can't compete against each other because they are from the same school. The next day, Lona and Bennet send in their respective applications.
Despite Lona's protests, Amy makes Lona dress up to go to homecoming. Lona leaves the house, promising to go to the dance, but instead walks to the movies. Once there, Lona eventually bumps into Bennet, who is also dressed for Homecoming and alone. They avoid one another, but after the movie ends, Bennet offers Lona a ride home, which she accepts. They stop to buy shakes and fries, then eat outside by a waterfront.
The next day at the regional qualifying tournament, Amy and Julia are once again passive aggressive towards each other as the debate progresses. Before the four qualifiers are announced, Julia is introduced as a guest speaker. As she talks, Amy mocks her to the crowd, who laugh in agreement. Lona attempts to get her to stop, but fails. Amy then takes it a step further and raises her hand to ask a mock question. Julia attempts to embarrass Amy, only to have Amy mock her again.
Lona and Bennet both complain to Kathy, the school guidance counselor and their confidant, that their mothers are the reason they didn't qualify to the state championship. Kathy instead tells them that maybe they just lost, but Bennet explains that the same thing happened in middle school twice. Kathy tries to get Lona and Bennet to work together as a team to try and qualify in another round of state regionals, but neither wants to do it.
Bennet eventually tricks Lona into agreeing to debate together, and the two begin to study together, though dysfunctionally. Together, they qualify for the state championship, but they are both still worried about their college applications. Kathy makes them promise to have fun, no matter where they end up. The results come in later that night, and it is revealed that neither one of them got into their dream school. Julia tries to use her influence to get Bennet into Yale, only to infuriate Bennet.
The next day as both Lona and Bennet wait outside Kathy's office to talk to her, the principal approaches them and informs them that Kathy died in a car crash. Bennet and Lona bond at Kathy's funeral and go out for shakes and fries, where Bennet talks about how neither he nor Lona were ever really high schoolers because they were so busy with homework, tests, and debate.
Neither Lona nor Bennet want to continue towards the state championship, but after a talk with Mr. Johnson, their debate sponsor, both agree to continue working together. This time, the two work cohesively and begin to bond and become friends. Two days before the state tournament, the two kiss, before Lona pulls away, leaving Bennet confused. Meanwhile, Julia tries to make peace with Amy. The next day, Lona does not go to school, so Bennet goes over at night, and tries to talk about the kiss only to be shut down by Lona, who explains that she does not know how to handle what they're becoming. The following day at the state championship, Bennet and Lona make it to finals, and have to compete with a team whose debate style differs from theirs. Lona begins to stutter during her speech, but recovers after she sees a note from Bennet that reminds her of Kathy. She and Bennet decide to agree with the other team and lose the state championship but become a couple.
It's prom night and both Julia and Amy prepare their children for the dance. It is revealed that Lona got accepted into Yale, and Bennet into Harvard. They decide to skip the dance and instead go to the movies, where Lona internally monologues in a way that is similar to the beginning of the movie, only this time, she talks about how much she likes him.
Cast
- Sami Gayle as Lona Skinner
- Jacob Latimore as Bennett Russell
- Christina Hendricks as Amy Skinner, Lona's mom who despises Julia.
- Uzo Aduba as Julia Russell, a successful state senator and Bennet's mom.
- Tom Bergeron as Principal Nelson
- Helen Hunt as Kathy, a school counselor and confidant to Lona and Bennett
- Paul Tigue as Mr. Johnson
- Austin Flynn as Twin Taylor
- Blake Flynn as Twin Tanner
- Evan Castelloe as Zack
- Shell Galloway as Brett
Production
The film was shot from March to April 2017 in locations such as Atlanta, Georgia as well as Newnan, Georgia.[2][3] Screenwriter Chad Klitzman wrote the role of Lona specifically for his sister, Sami Gayle, to portray. Speaking of her brother and the role, Gayle said:
He saw the types of material that was coming in for me, the types of characters that I was being sought after to play, and he wanted me to be able to fulfill my dream of having a leading role in a film where it was about a driven, independent young woman who was looking for a kind of self-fulfillment that was independent of external things like a relationship. She's just a girl who is trying to be the best version of herself, and so he thought, Why not take this into our own hands? So when he wrote this character, not only was it fulfilling the dream role I wanted to play, but it was also—since he's my brother and we're very close and nobody really knows you better than your family—tailor-made for me to play to my strengths as an actor and to really allow them to shine.[4]
Reception
Glenn Kenny of The New York Times praised the film as "fleet, sweet and often genuinely funny." Kenny wrote Candy Jar "honors young people of intellectual achievement while also making sharp points about class and educational standards. The two young leads, Jacob Latimore and Sami Gayle, are deft at playing brainy, and Helen Hunt, Christina Hendricks and Uzo Aduba offer solid adult support; Ms. Hunt is particularly effective as a sympathetic guidance counselor."[5]
Jeffrey Lyles of Lyles Movie FilesDirector gave praise, saying "Ben Shelton does a terrific job of making something so potentially routine and boring as debate clubs interesting. Shelton has a clear understanding of the genre and liberally tosses in some fun split screens, close-ups and dynamic presentations of the debates to make them more exciting."[6] Joe Reid of Decider.com also gave a positive review, saying "between Hunt, Aduba, and Hendricks, the acting level for a movie of this caliber is uncommonly high. This is highly watchable movie that doesn't break any new ground but will, at worst, make you think of a good half-dozen other great movies like it."[7]
References
- Official Trailer for High School Debate Team Indie Comedy 'Candy Jar'
- http://stompandstammer.com/call-sheet/netflix-movie-candy-jar-hands-atlanta/
- http://times-herald.com/news/2017/02/netflix-to-film-candy-jar-in-newnan
- How This Netflix Star Got Her Big Break Using Backstage
- Kenny, Glenn. "Netflix Roulette, Where the Movies Never End". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- "Candy Jar movie review - Netflix teen romance is sweet addition to queue". Lyles Movie Files. 2018-05-06. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
- "Stream It or Skip It: 'Candy Jar' on Netflix, Your Next Nerdy High-School Obsession". Decider. 2018-04-27. Retrieved 2018-05-24.