George Washington (2000)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

David Gordon Green

Writer:

David Gordon Green (written by)

Release Date:

28 September 2001 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

down this twisted road, please watch over my soul and lift me up so gently so as not to touch the ground.

Plot:

A delicately told and deceptively simple story of a group of children in a depressed small town who band together to cover up a tragic mistake.

Plot Keywords:

Cover Up | Small Town | Guilt | Interracial | Accidental Death

Awards:

9 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Candace Evanofski	...	Nasia
Donald Holden	...	George
Damian Jewan Lee	...	Vernon
Curtis Cotton III	...	Buddy
Rachael Handy	...	Sonya
Paul Schneider	...	Rico Rice
Eddie Rouse	...	Damascus
Janet Taylor	...	Aunt Ruth
Derricka Rolle	...	Whitney
Ebony Jones	...	Denise
Jonathan Davidson	...	Euless
Scott Clackum	...	Augie
Beau Nix	...	Rico's Father
Jason Shirley	...	Railroad Worker
William Tipton	...	Railroad Worker

Runtime:

89 min | Argentina:94 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival) | USA:90 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:TV-MA (TV rating) | Argentina:13 | France:U | UK:12 | USA:Unrated | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

North Carolina School of the Arts - 405 W. 4th Street, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA

Company:

Free Country U.S.A.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): George jumps into a pool to save a young boy from drowning. He swims very well. George has a condition from birth which makes it extremely dangerous for him to allow his head to get wet. He almost died once after being baptized in water. With this condition, it is highly unlikely for him to have learned to swim as well as he does.

Quotes:

George: I'm a hero because I like to save people's lives. Stuff like that.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Love the Hard Way (2001)

Soundtrack:

Pilot Suicide Theory

You're expected to think

Don't look for a simple, linear plot line or resolutions to what you think are the problems. "George Washington" is the offspring of "Gummo" and "Stand by Me", and a very distant relative to "Eraserhead" (but with a soul). The dialog is often beyond the age, character, and scope of the kids depicted (similar to "Brick"), which can be disconcerting, yet, when suspending disbelief, remained interesting. The scoring is dark and moody – and seldom lets up. On occasion, the lack of actor training can be seen in the kids, but for the most part they do a good job. The locations are full of dying and dead culture – rich, textural, beautiful crumbling Industrial Revolution. This is a ponderous, sometimes overly artful film that is none the less worth seeing and considering afterwards. It has things to say – and you're expected to use your own mind.