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George Washington
George Washington
	The Criterion Collection DVD cover
Directed by	David Gordon Green
Written by	David Gordon Green
Produced by	Sam Froelich; David Gordon Green; Sacha W. Mueller; Lisa Muskat;
Starring	Candace Evanofski; Curtis Cotton III; Donald Holden; Damian Jewan Lee; Rachael Handy; Paul Schneider;
Cinematography	Tim Orr
Edited by	Zene Baker; Steven Gonzales;
Music by	Michael Linnen; David Wingo;
Production; companies	Youandwhatarmy Filmed Challenges; Blue Moon Film Productions; Down Home Entertainment;
Distributed by	Cowboy Pictures
Release dates	February 11, 2000 (Berlinale); October 27, 2000 (United States);
Running time	90 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$42,000
Box office	$283,846

George Washington is a 2000 American drama film written and directed by David Gordon Green in his directorial debut. Its story centers on a group of children in a depressed small town in North Carolina who band together to cover up a tragic mistake.

The film premiered at the 50th Berlin International Film Festival and received critical acclaim.

Plot

The film follows a group of kids growing up in a depressed rural town in North Carolina, as seen through the eyes of 12-year-old Nasia. After breaking up with her show-off boyfriend Buddy, she withdraws from her delinquent friends and becomes romantically interested in a strange, introverted boy named George Richardson, who is burdened by the fact that his skull never hardened after birth. Tragedy strikes when George accidentally kills Buddy, and he and his friends, Vernon and Sonya, fearing punishment, decide to hide Buddy's body. In the event's aftermath, George takes up the unlikely role of town hero.

Cast

Candace Evanofski as Nasia
Curtis Cotton III as Buddy
Donald Holden as George Richardson
Damian Jewan Lee as Vernon
Rachael Handy as Sonya
Paul Schneider as Rico Rice
Eddie Rouse as Damascus
Janet Taylor as Aunt Ruth

Production

George Washington marked David Gordon Green's feature film debut as a screenwriter, film director and film producer.^[2] It was also the first feature film role for actor Eddie Rouse.^[2]

Reception

The film has an 84% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 63 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Languid and melancholy, George Washington is a carefully observed rumination on adolescence and rural life."^[3] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 82 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating “universal acclaim.”^[4] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times selected it as one of the ten best films of 2000,^[5] as did Time and New York Times critic Elvis Mitchell.^[6]

In Roger Ebert's four star review, he called the cinematography by Tim Orr the best of the year, also writing "it is not about plot, but about memory and regret. It remembers a summer that was not a happy summer, but there will never again be a summer so intensely felt, so alive, so valuable."^[7] Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader gave the film a favorable review, writing "You have to bring a lot of yourself to this film if you want it to give something back, but the rewards are considerable."^[8] Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle called it "a director's baby from the opening frames" and "not like any other movie. That, in itself, makes it something to see. Writer-director David Gordon Green, in his feature debut, has created a visually and emotionally consistent universe."^[9] Rolling Stone's Peter Travers called David Gordon Green "a writer and director of rare grace and feeling", whose directorial debut is of "startling originality that will haunt you for a good, long time."^[10] Joe Leydon of Variety was one of ten critics (out of 56) to give the film a negative review, calling it an "undistinguished and uninvolving attempt to offer a rural spin on Kids".^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b Leydon, Joe (April 17, 2000). "George Washington". Variety. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
^ ^a ^b Barnes, Mike (December 8, 2014). "Character Actor Eddie Rouse Dies at 60". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
^ "George Washington". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
^ "George Washington Reviews". Metacritic.
^ Ebert, Roger (December 31, 2000). "Ebert's Top Movies of 2000". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
^ "Best of 2000 - Year-end Awards and Nominations". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 7, 2005. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
^ Ebert, Roger (January 26, 2001). "George Washington". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on November 14, 2005. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
^ Rosenbaum, Jonathan (October 17, 2000). "George Washington". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on October 17, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
^ LaSalle, Mick (January 26, 2001). "'Washington's' Truth: Vivid tale of adolescents has uniqueness of art". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
^ Travers, Peter (December 10, 2000). "George Washington". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 9, 2013. Retrieved October 22, 2022.