Geography Club

At an American high school a few students set up a secret club. They choose a deliberately boring name: the geography club. The point is that nobody should want to join, because the club is really for something else: a place where students like them can meet. Russell is on the football team and nobody knows anything about him; he has a secret relationship with Kevin, the team's star, and Kevin does not want it known. Gary Entin directs. The source is Brent Hartinger's novel for young readers. The subject is not visibility but choosing not to be visible. The club can exist because it is secret, and the film puts that contradiction at its centre. The school is built in detail: the hierarchy of the team, the order of the canteen and the speed of gossip. Its best element is Kevin; the narrative does not judge him as a coward and shows what he would lose. It was made cheaply and shown narrowly. Its limit is tone; the narrative runs in the shape of a teen comedy and the serious matter lightens in places. Who it is for: viewers who like youth films and narratives set at school. Who it is not for: the script is formulaic, there are many characters, and the ending ties up easily.