ATL (film)

Infobox Film
name = ATL


caption = Movie poster
director = Chris Robinson
producer = Dallas Austin
James Lassiter
Jody Gerson
Timothy M. Bourne
Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins
Will Smith
writer = Screenplay:
Tina Gordon Chism
Story:
Antwone Fisher
starring = Tip "T.I." Harris
Big Boi
Evan Ross
Jackie Long
Lauren London
music = Aaron Zigman
cinematography = Karsten Gopinath aka Crash
editing = David Blackburn
distributor = Warner Bros. Pictures
released = flagicon|US March 31, 2006
runtime = 105 min.
country = U.S.A.
language = English
budget = $20,000,000 [cite news|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=atl.htm|title=ATL (2006)|accessdate=2008-10-06|work=Box Office Mojo]
gross = $21,170,563
website = http://www2.warnerbros.com/atl
amg_id = 1:339606
imdb_id = 0466856

"ATL" is a 2006 American comedy-drama film, and the feature film directorial debut of music video director Chris Robinson. The screenplay was written by Tina Gordon Chism from an original story by Antwone Fisher, and is loosely based on the experiences of the film's producers Dallas Austin and Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins (of the R&B group TLC) growing up in Atlanta, Georgia.cite video
people = Austin, Dallas; Daniels, Albert; David, Keith; Harris, Tip; Lassiter, James; London, Lauren; Long, Jackie; Newton, Vaughn; Robinson, Chris; Ross, Evan; Watkins, Tionne; Weaver, Jason; Williamson, Mykelti
title = In the Rink: A Director's Journey, Behind-the-scenes look at "ATL".
medium = DVD
publisher = Warner Bros. Pictures
date = 2006 Retrieved on 2008-10-12.] The film is a coming-of-age tale concerning Rashad, played by rap artist T.I. in his film debut, and his friends in their final year in high school and on the brink of adulthood. The film also stars Antwan Andre Patton, aka Big Boi of the rap group OutKast, Evan Ross, Jackie Long, Lauren London, and Mykelti Williamson. Filming took place over a 45-day schedule in Atlanta.

"ATL" opened on March 31, 2006, and on its opening weekend the film grossed a total of $11,554,404, ranking third in the U.S. box office. [cite news|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=2006&wknd=13&p=.htm|title=Weekend Box Office Results for March 31-April 2, 2006|accessdate=2008-10-07|work=Box Office Mojo] It eventually went on to gross a little over $21 million dollars, making it a success but not a large one due to its $20 million budget. The film received mixed though generally favorable reviews from critics, and was nominated for numerous awards. The film is rated PG-13 for drug content, language, sexual material, and violence.

Cast

Release

Critical reaction

At Allmovie the film was given three stars, and critic Derek Armstrong, in a positive review of the film, stated that the film is only an average coming of age story "because some substance must take a backseat to all this beautifully crafted style." [cite news|url=http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:339606~T1|title=allmovie ((( ATL > Review )))|accessdate=2008-10-09|work=Allmovie] Melissa Walters at BlackFilm.com, while believing some of the writing to be cliché and the story to be somewhat familiar, also called the film heartfelt, genuine, and enjoyable. [cite news|title=March 2006 I blackfilm.com I reviews I film I ATL|last=Walters| first=Melissa|publisher=BlackFilm.com|date=2006|url=http://www.blackfilm.com/20060324/reviews/atl.shtml|accessdate=2008-10-09] Noted film critic Roger Ebert awarded the film three stars in his Chicago Sun-Times review, calling the film warm and praising the screenplay's "unforced, genuine affection for its characters." [cite news|title=ATL :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews|last=Ebert| first=Roger|publisher=RogerEbert.com|date=2006-03-31|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060330/REVIEWS/60323002|accessdate=2008-10-09] IGN.com gave the film a 4/5 rating, calling Robinson's directorial debut "masterful." [cite news|title=IGN: ATL Review|last=Gilchrist| first=Todd|publisher=IGN.com Movies|date=2006|url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/722/722919p1.html|accessdate=2008-10-11] At Metacritic, critics have helped the film average a 63/100 score, while the users have given an even better score of 7.5/10. [cite news|url=http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/atl?q=ATL|title=ATL (2006): Reviews|accessdate=2008-10-09|work=Metacritic] On the flipside, the film has averaged a 56% fresh rating by users at review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, [cite news|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/atl/reviews_users.php|title=ATL - Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=2008-10-09|work=Rotten Tomatoes] with a higher 63% by the Cream of the Crop (Top Critics) section. [cite news|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/atl/?critic=creamcrop|title=ATL Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=2008-10-09|work=Rotten Tomatoes] Ruthe Stein from the San Francisco Chronicle called the film one of the better kind of its genre, praising the performances of the young cast, and the film's star T.I. in particular. [cite news|title=Boys to men -- it's a tough transition for these young adults in Atlanta|last=Stein| first=Ruthe|publisher="SFGate.com"|date=2006-03-31|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/03/31/DDG9AI0BO51.DTL&type=movies|accessdate=2008-10-09] At Yahoo! Movies, based on 13 reviews the film has averaged a B- by the critics standards, and a B+ based on 12878 users. [cite news|url=http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808762739/info|title=ATL (2006) - Movie Info - Yahoo! Movies|accessdate=2008-10-09|work=Yahoo! Movies]

All reviews of the picture weren't so enthusiastic, however. Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly graded the film a B-, saying that while the skating scenes are a blast, the film stumbles when it attempts to be too much for too many audiences. [cite news|title=ATL | Movie Review | Entertainment Weekly|last=Schwarzbaum| first=Lisa|publisher="EW.com"|date=2006-03-29|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1178139,00.html|accessdate=2008-10-09] Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times said he was surprised that with so many untested actors rounding out the main cast, "the most amateurish thing about it is the script." Genzlinger also called the screenplay cliché-marred and predictable, while giving credit to the young actors of the film. He was also critical of Chris Robinson's direction, stating that he "can't stay with a scene long enough to let his actors build momentum." [cite news|title=ATL - Movie - Review - The New York Times|last=Genzlinger| first=Neil|publisher="The New York Times"|date=2006-03-31|url=http://movies.nytimes.com/2006/03/31/movies/31atl.html|accessdate=2008-10-09] At The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Bob Longino gave a particularly negative review of the movie, calling it boring, uninteresting, and slow. However, Longino did say that stars T.I. and Big Boi's performances improved as the film progressed, and that there were a few laugh-out-loud comedic moments in the film. [cite news|title=ATL - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution movie review | AccessAtlanta|last=Longino| first=Bob|publisher="AccessAtlanta.com"|date=2008-10-09|url=http://www.accessatlanta.com/movies/content/shared/movies/reviews/A/atl/ajc.html|accessdate=2008-10-09]

Awards & nominations

References

External links

* " [http://www2.warnerbros.com/atl/ ATL] " – Official site
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* [http://madeinatlantis.com/movies_central/2006/atl.htm ATL Production Notes]