This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

"The Education of Charlie Banks" is not as grim as suggested. It primarily takes place at college. A beautiful college with beautiful books and beautiful girls. The darkness is within the inner characteristics of most of the characters. Charlie Banks is expected to fight against injustice but it's much easier to ignore it.The film tries to take the stand that retaliating against malice or insolence with violence is wrong. I understand what they're saying but they seemed to get confused with which actions should be taken more seriously. What the film does get right is the characters and their internal and mutual contentions.We are presented to a world of privileged kids, semi-privileged kids and not privileged kids. They all attempt to be friends but there's an awful lot of differences to overcome for that to happen. Throughout the entire time, Charlie experiences paranoia, jealousy and self-assurance, three very conflicting emotions for somebody to be experiencing at once, but they are all clearly portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg. The real star however, is Jason Ritter as the charismatic, but rage-filled and troubled Mick."The Education of Charlie Banks" attaches some rather interesting thoughts to a mixture of typical college students. By keeping it real, they didn't know exactly what to do with those thoughts, I also could have used a bit more humour, but I was mostly quite impressed with my time spent with Charlie and those damn rich kids.

As the directorial debut from Limp Bizkit's outspoken and often loathed frontman, Fred Durst, it's safe to say that the bar was set very low for "The Education of Charlie Banks" -- too low, as a matter of fact, as Durst's film (drawn from a screenplay by Peter Elkoff) is a surprisingly rich experience that unfortunately sat on the shelf for too long after being made and which got virtually ignored by critics and mainstream audiences alike.Opening in the mid-70's and then picking up sometime in the 80's, "The Education of Charlie Banks" tells the story of a bully (Jason Ritter) who appears as some sort of boogeyman to the title character (Jesse Eisenburg). Though the two make acquaintances as teenagers, it isn't until his college years that Charlie finds himself being truly haunted by the ultra-violent hot-head when he shows up unexpectedly in the dorm-room he shares with his childhood friend (Chris Marquette). Slowly, he works his way into Charlie's life, tagging along in spite of the fact that he never quite fits in. Has this friend from the past changed his ways, or is he just a hot-head ready to blow at any minute?Without a doubt, the film was influenced by the films of Martin Scorsese (see the "Raging Bull" poster in Charlie's room) and although it's not quite in the same league, it's a noble effort nevertheless. The film reaches for lofty heights, and thanks to its credible cast, reaches them. You'll feel immersed in the characters and situations in "The Education of Charlie Banks" and while it's ending doesn't exactly resolve anything, ultimately resembles reality a bit closer than the average coming-of-age story. It's a well-written and well-paced story directed almost effortlessly by Durst that should intrigue the interested and silence the critical.

First of all, I love high school/college setting, dysfunctional family and coming of age drama. Despite having the elements in this film, it was missing lot of chemistry between the actors, the time period didn't fit the screen, wasn't really impressed by the lens/filter or the cinematography. It would be amazing if Gus Van wrote/directed this film. Nevertheless, I do have to praise Fred Durst for evolving. He has come long way from directing music videos to the big screen. He displayed so much maturity through music choices in this film and long drone camera staring into the characters. Also, to get a dramatic gig like this film and to bring forth so much emotion off the characters/story was just good for Fred. He really tried to capture the mentality of teenagers/young adult. it was very good first choice for Fred Durst. I am very much impressed by his first attempt. (o yes I love the guy, he was so humble and awesome guy when I met him at TRL in 2003)

The Education of Charlie Banks is an above decent film and perhaps one of the better movies to come out during the first half of 2009.The interesting concept and storyline kept me interested, along with the great performances of Jesse Eisenberg, Chris Marquette, and especially Jason Ritter. But, for some reason, it lacks chemistry with the actors and the overall feel to it.First time director Fred Durst (yes, the vocalist from crappy rock band Limp Bizkit) managed to impress me, which is a feat I never thought would happen. He captures the essence and feel of the 70's and early 80's perfectly with a great attention to detail.Overall, this is a good, if uneven, movie; but it's just really nothing special.