excellent awkward

The first feature from writer-director Charlie Polinger takes the worst people in the world (pre-teen boys) and puts them at the heart of a psychological drama that highlights the way a need to belong often manifests in bullying and ostracizing. Everett Blunck is Ben, an awkward (well, they’re all awkward) boy away at a swim camp, desperate to fit in. Kayo Martin is Jake, the closest thing the boys have to a ringleader, and he points his ire at Eli (Kenny Rasmussen), a boy with a rash that he’s dubbed the plague. Ben is stuck between trying to befriend the lonely Eli, without alienating the unforgiving Jake.

Part Lord of the Flies, part The Substance, The Plague highlights one of the worst periods in someone’s life (and if it wasn’t for you, you might’ve been part of the problem) and gives it a grace and focus that is uncomfortable, frustrating and enlightening. All of the main boys are impressive, but Martin really stands out as a future star. Recent Oscar nominee Joel Edgerton appears all too briefly as the boys coach and Ben’s sounding board.

Jonathan’s grade – B