Try Harder!
2021 American film
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Try Harder! is a 2021 American documentary film, directed and produced by Debbie Lum. It follows students at Lowell High School as they apply and hope for admission to the college of their dreams.
- Debbie Lum
- Lou Nakasako
- Nico Opper
- Kathy Huang
- Lou Nakasako
- Amy Ferraris
- Andrew Gersh
| Try Harder! | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Debbie Lum |
| Produced by |
|
| Cinematography |
|
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Diana Salier |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | Greenwich Entertainment |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $32,432[1] |
It had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 30, 2021. It was released on December 3, 2021, by Greenwich Entertainment.
Synopsis
Students at Lowell High School apply and hope for admission to the college of their dreams.[2]
Release
The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 30, 2021.[3] It also screened at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival on June 2, 2021.[4][5] It also screened at AFI Docs in June 2021.[6] In August 2021, Greenwich Entertainment acquired distribution rights to the film.[7] It was released on December 3, 2021.[8] The film also aired on Independent Lens on PBS on May 2, 2022.[9][10]
Reception
Box office
In its opening weekend, the film earned $27,815 from 5 theaters.[11]
Critical response
Try Harder received positive reviews from film critics. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 75 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[12] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 97% of 38 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.60/10. The website's consensus reads: "Straightforward and disarmingly, charmingly sincere, Try Harder! follows college-bound students through their final year of high school"[13]