Another Sundance, another documentary about high schoolers ambitiously trying to prepare for leadership. Unlike Boys State or Girls State though Speak's stakes are much lower. We follow a procession of five students entering into the Original Oratory section of the National Speech & Debate tournament, a contest requiring participants to write and perform their own original speeches which often seem to tackle weighty political and social topics. The cast assembled here is diverse in their experience within the competition (including a former two-time champion) as well as the topics they cover. Each student, of course, draws on their personal experience as the foundation for their writing so while one speaks about caring for a brother with disabilities, another draws on her experience of Islamophobia and racism, and yet another pulls from his own ordeal following the suicide of his mother. It's an incredibly likable cast (Noah I will avenge you) but I kind of got what I expected from a film like this. It's pleasant, light, and invests you enough in these people's lives but lacks the kind of profound passion one might find in a more traditional sports doc. Still, it's a lovely afternoon watch.
Another Sundance, another documentary about high schoolers ambitiously trying to prepare for leadership. Unlike Boys State or Girls State though Speak's stakes are much lower. We follow a procession of five students entering into the Original Oratory section of the National Speech & Debate tournament, a contest requiring participants to write and perform their own original speeches which often seem to tackle weighty political and social topics. The cast assembled here is diverse in their experience within the competition (including a former two-time champion) as well as the topics they cover. Each student, of course, draws on their personal experience as the foundation for their writing so while one speaks about caring for a brother with disabilities, another draws on her experience of Islamophobia and racism, and yet another pulls from his own ordeal following the suicide of his mother. It's an incredibly likable cast (Noah I will avenge you) but I kind of got what I expected from a film like this. It's pleasant, light, and invests you enough in these people's lives but lacks the kind of profound passion one might find in a more traditional sports doc. Still, it's a lovely afternoon watch.
