MovieChat Forums > Flipped (2010) Discussion > Bryce was a complete jerk

Bryce was a complete jerk


There was absolutely nothing about him that warranted Julie's crush on him. Yet another "he's cute", so he must be so amazing.

When will filmmakers ever understand that if the characters are jerk some of the audience just won't care about them? I sure didn't.

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^ This. All of this.

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Bryce wasn't a jerk ... he was a boy that was still learning how to act in social situation. When he really, truly ignored her he was a little kid. As they got older, he talked to her ... occasionally ... but was trying to walk the fine line of "not being rude" with "not encouraging her crush" with "not being too chummy with the school weirdo" (and yes, she was the school weirdo, for crying out loud she spent a year surreptitiously sniffing his hair). He should have actually talked to her about the eggs, but he truly did want to spare her feelings. Mentioning the yard was tactless, but again, this was his father talking. It was also his father's decision to not eat the eggs ... I don't think Bryce had and real problems there. Even the scene with his friend in the library, probably the most hurtful thing he did in the movie, he acted as many kids that age would have. The topic of her uncle came up because Bryce was trying to defend the family. When his friend attacked her uncle's mental illness Bryce had the option of either attacking his friend or defending Juli (who he was already afraid of getting grief for having a crush on her) -- and this in a situation Bryce thought was private. Few people would argue vehemently with their buddy on this, even if they don't agree.

Don't mistake me. Bryce is no hero. He's not an amazing catch. He certainly did nothing to earn or deserve Juli's devotion. But what he is is a very normal person. He's immature. He's a teenager. He's been beaten down by his loud and angry father, and has yet to find his own voice and the courage to use it. Throughout the movie Bryce wants to do the right thing but is either too immature or too afraid of the social consequences to do it (not a great trait, but not a trait that separates him from most teenagers). This is why the final scene works so well. For the first time, Bryce shows both the maturity to think of Juli instead of himself, the wherewithal to think of a good idea of what to do, and the courage to follow through on it. In other words, in the final scene we see a hint of the adult that Bryce could someday be, the person that Juli always hoped he would mature into.

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This is why the final scene works so well. For the first time, Bryce shows both the maturity to think of Juli instead of himself, the wherewithal to think of a good idea of what to do, and the courage to follow through on it. In other words, in the final scene we see a hint of the adult that Bryce could someday be, the person that Juli always hoped he would mature into.


Eh, I guess? But at his age, teenagers can do the right thing and not be total jerks. As for the final scene, I always figured it was more of a result of his guilt for almost kissing Juli than because he wanted to attempt to get closer to her. The movie is open ended enough that you can infer what might've happened... I'm not so sure if he would be willing to sacrifice his social status to truly become her boyfriend. It's possible, but I'm not so sure. A person doesn't just change everything as abruptly as Bryce was portrayed in this movie.

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I can understand that interpretation. I disagree because I don't think it was abrupt -- he spent the last third of the movie wrestling over how to do that. And trying to kiss her publicly in the middle of the cafeteria (showing up the popular girl he was on a 'date' with) already showed him willing to sacrifice his social status.

You are right. Teenagers can do the right thing and not be jerks. But they also, at some point, have to learn how to do this -- and that's the stage that Bryce seemed to be in to me. Keep in mind, he never does anything actively mean to Juli, He never antagonizes her. His sins are largely of what he failed to do than of what he did do. These are still character flaws, but they are redeemable ones.

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I couldn't have said it better myself mathknapp! You nailed the whole point of the story. It is a coming of agree story for both characters. Julie begins to understand that people are not always all the appear to be. She learns that she has to question her first impressions and see people for who they really are. Bryce on the other hand has to learn how to be his true self. He has to learn how to overcome the negative influence of his father, and decide what kind of man he wants to be. The ending is a clear indication that Bryce is finally brave enough to be the person Julie always thought he could be. He is definitely not a jerk.

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Thank you for summing the character up like that, you are awesome. I would like to add this:

I am Bryce. I was a little older, even, when I repelled a girl who liked me (I felt ashamed) and I regret it deeply; had I been wiser, I am sure my adolescence would have been much better. Also, I assure you it is the strangest thing to have a jerk for a dad. When you are growing up, the world seems strangely at odds with your hero. Realizing the extent to which your hero is really just a jerk ― why the world won't accept him ― can take a looong time.

Great movie.

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I don't think Bryce was a jerk. He was just confused.

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this movie is a 1.5 hour douche test. If you don't think Bryce was a jerk, I am sorry to inform you that you are a douchebag.

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Nah, he wasn't a jerk, and they weren't a douchebag (nor am I). Imho.

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My vote history: http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=13037287

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See trope: Comically Missing the Point.

You call it immature, Chris Hansen calls it "catching a predator", I call it...The Super Troll

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In the beginning I thought he was......however, he came through in the end. I love the ending.

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Let's not forget, Bryce is either mimicking or getting his opinions from his father.

From his first meeting with her his jerk of a dad was the one who was rude and mean to the girl who wanted to welcome them and help them out.

I haven't read the book but it was definitely hinted that Bryce's reaction to the girl stems from his father's example.

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This was my thought, as well. On of the major themes of the movie is potential. Julie saw potential in Bryce's character. What the movie hints at throughout is Julie's struggle at trying to figure out if Bryce will ever come around and live up to the potential that she saw in him. It just took a long time for him to learn how to be a good guy.

Julie had it from the beginning because she had a great, loving family with the right kind of values. She had a head start. Bryce didn't have the same upbringing and had to overcome the setbacks in character that he had learned from his father. We see him starting to come around as he sees the good example set by his grandfather. He eventually comes to appreciate Julie and even begins to learn from her example once he sees er through his grandfathers eyes. In the end we see that he has changed. It is implied that he will actually grow into a good guy as time goes on, especially with Julie around.

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I agree with what the very first person said. I loved Juli, but Bryce was a jerk! And for all the theories, Bryce was a jerk for like 6 YEARS. Even Juli FINALLY came to the realization that he was a jerk and wanted nothing to do with him. So when Bryce realized Juli wasn't going to pine for him anymore, then he needed to have her attention. I don't see the maturity in that and I didn't see it in the movie either. Julie Rocks! Bryce was a douche!

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Go back and read my "no he wasn't post". What did Bryce do that makes him a jerk?

The bad things were:

1) Avoiding her when they were younger. She was desperately in love with him and he wasn't into her. And he was 12. She stalked him. He tried to stay away. He wasn't mean. Didn't make fun of her. Didn't encourage her crush. Just ... tried not to get sniffed.

2) Throwing out the eggs. Which he did only because his Dad made him. And which he didn't want to tell Juli about, precisely because he didn't want to hurt her feelings. Not handled well, but again, for a 12/13 year old, it was a non-confrontational way of trying not to hurt her.

3) Not sticking up for her uncle. Here, the jerk was Bryce's friend. Bryce never joined in on the making fun of her uncle. Never voiced approval for it. Neither did he defend Juli's family, but Bryce was having what he believed to be a private conversation with a friend. He took the approach of internally rolling his eyes rather than picking an argument with his friend. It's what I do when my more conservative friends talk politics in front of me -- smile, nod, and choose not to get into an argument even though I disagree with them. It was just unfortunate that Juli overheard.

Like I said, in all of these situation, Bryce could have handled things better. He didn't because he lacked the maturity and self confidence to know what to do in situations that were awkward for him at that age. But (unless I've forgotten something ... haven't seen the movie in a year) he never did anything actively mean to Juli. He never picked on her. Never teased her, even when others did. Spent most of that time (once the hair sniffing ended) on reasonably friendly terms with her, even though he knew she had feelings for him that he didn't return.

Not a jerk. He was an immature child ... but he was 12/13 years old ... of course he was an immature child. ANd over the course of the movie, because of Juli and with the help of his grandfather he starts to grow up. He hasn't quite gotten there by the end of the movie, but he's started.

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You've said it very well mathknapp. I thought he was a jerk too at first, but your comments made me think differently. Of course, I still felt so sorry for Julie when she catches him throwing out the eggs. Even more than the scene in the library, that was when I really felt for her.

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What did Bryce do that makes him a jerk?


When Juli was up in the sycamore tree, and it was about to be cut, she begged him for help with tears in her eyes and her voice cracking. He knew that tree was special to her, but the only thing he thought was "I'm not gonna cut school for this", what the hell?

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[deleted]

I don't think either characters were jerks. It's normal for little girls to chase little boys and for the boys to run away at that age. Then, later on, it's normal for a guy to fall for a girl and then to have a hard time proving how he feels.

I think the story needed for Bryce to be ordinary and for Juli to be a unique spirit. I think that's what made it romantic.

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Bryce was no more or less of a jerk then Julie was for having a crush on him because of his dazzling eyes. In the book his eyes are very blue, as are mine, so I know a little about people having a crush because of a physical trait who are not interested in the attributes of the person. In the book, Bryce's father had been a good-looking young man whom his mother had chosen because of his looks, not his attributes as a person, and Bryce's grandfather (his mother's father) was trying to make sure he didn't turn out to be like his father.

www.freerice.com

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Interesting, if Bryce ever were to follow his father's footsteps, assuming Julie marries him, she would probably be as responsible as him for making their kids little jerks like Bryce would end up being, so actually the initial shallowness of Julie could have had a negative output in the future, which would not put her in a good light by then, just like Bryce's mother's case.
Still, I think for what the book and Reiner aimed was for us to see Julie's kid crush as a cute trait rather than a shallow one, and I think given Julie's development into a very assertive and intelligent 12-or-so year old, that would end up redeeming any possible character weakness from before.
I think by showing us how her perception of the real world evolved over time was an interesting quality of this film, she obviously matured faster than Bryce, but thanks to her becoming more mature, Bryce was forced to raise his game and become more mature over time too.
The fact that an initially innocent and shallow kid crush would end up becoming a defining moment that would help turn their lives for the better (Bryce becomes more mature and assertive, Julie becomes less shallow and more analizing, plus she ends up getting to know and accept his uncle, which actually helps a lot for her to understand better her family's dynamics) goes to show how the little things in everyday-life can become substantial in eventually paving the way for someone to choose, and that for me is the magic of life.



now this is acting: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm2458172160/tt1528718

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