A high school girl (Ellen Page), whose mother pushes her towards beauty pageants, discovers roller derby.
There are a few subplots involving her best friend's love life and quest to leave town, her parents' relationship, a romance with a guy, etc., but the jist of the movie is about this girl whose mother is pushing her towards one life, while she's drawn to another.
It's not as boring as it sounds.
Directed by Drew Barrymore, who also plays a small role, this film is exceptionally well acted. Not sure if it was Drew or the large cast of veteran actors she assembled, but this film really shines due to the performances given.
Despite the majority of the characters being female, there are 4 key male characters (not counting Jimmy Fallon's ring announcer role or the dumb high school jock). How they're handled is pretty interesting. In no way is this a man bashing film. In fact, I'd wager the writer of the book was saying the exact opposite. One could easily argue that one of the big themes of this film is: "Don't discount or take the men in your life for granted."
The more I think about how the men are portrayed, the more I think it was brilliant. Not just on the writer's part, but also on Drew's part.
Definitely a drama, so make sure you're in the mood, but I think it's absolutely worth the rental.
8 out of 10.