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| Spellbound
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The National Spelling Bee
has always had a Spirit of America aura that I find slightly obnoxious;
knowing how to spell baroquely difficult words, after all, isn’t automatically
high proof of good citizenship. But, as Jeff Blitz’s entertaining
documentary Spellbound shows, it’s undeniable that a disproportionate
number of Spelling Bee finalists are from first-generation immigrant
families who regard good spelling as the passport to the good life.
Blitz chose eight boys and girls from widely disparate backgrounds,
all of whom compete for the top prize. Some of the kids—like Angela,
whose parents are Mexican immigrants speaking almost no English, or
Ashley, the black daughter of a single mother in the D.C. projects,
or Ted, who grew up in rural Missouri in his family’s double-wide
trailer—are almost too perfectly cast as contestants. And yet their
stories are real, and so is their valor. They’re thrilled and a bit
awed by their success, and they seem genuine in wishing each other
well. Blitz interviews the kids in a free-form way that disarms them
and brings out their blithe eccentricities. (One boy, Harry, is a
geeky sprite who cracks up at his own jokes; when it comes time for
him to spell cephalagia, you really pull for him to ace it.)
The parents, for the most part, come across more conventionally, but
perhaps mention should be made of the father of Neil, who lives with
his parents and sister in upscale San Clemente, California. This guy
drills his son for the championship by hiring spelling coaches and
running through computer programs of words given to past winners—he
even tries to organize prayer circles for his boy back in India, with
promises of payback should he win. He’s as annoying as any stage parent
could ever be, and although I feel duty-bound not to reveal the winner
here, let’s just say that prayer does not always work miracles. (1
hr. 37 mins.; NR) — PETER RAINER
Opens April 30
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Showtimes & tickets (movietickets.com)
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