Former child star Freddie Highmore (best known as the unsinkable Charlie Bucket in Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) stars as George, a high-school senior who has been on a prolonged homework strike due to his conviction that things like school, exams and diplomas don't matter when there's so much wrong with the world. Rather than hand the kid his expulsion papers and toss his ass out on the street, the teachers and principal at his tony Manhattan prep school have been tolerating his bad attitude in the hopes that he'll eventually pull it together. But with Graduation Day looming, their patience is finally wearing thin.

Not that George cares -- the only subject he's currently interested in is Sally (Emma Roberts), the free-spirited, raccoon-eyed girl he's recently befriended. Their relationship seems odd until you realize that they're both raging narcissists; she likes to toy with guys' emotions and he enjoys pretending to seem far more interesting and mysterious than he actually is. Naturally, George also happens to be a frustrated artist and thus frequently seeks the counsel of another self-absorbed twit, a Brooklyn-based painter (Michael Angarano) who speaks only in clichés. Meanwhile, back at home, his mom and stepdad (Rita Wilson and Sam Robards) have all but given up trying to parent him, instead turning their attention towards their own problems, which include unpaid bills and a marriage that's steadily sliding towards divorce.

It feels somewhat churlish to beat up on a film that ultimately just wants to impart well-meaning messages about the importance of taking risks and working hard, both being familiar lessons that are nevertheless worth reinforcing. But the central characters are so aggressively irritating, it's hard to root for them to succeed. Wiesen's smartest decision as a director was hiring Highmore to play George; his naturally likable screen presence at least gives the audience some reason to keep watching this mopey, unpleasant kid. The rest of the supporting cast, Roberts included, is as bland as the movie's flavorless depiction of New York. For his next assignment, Wiesen should work on developing a film that feels more like real life and less like a screenwriting class exercise.

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