Zero Point

Zero Point is an Estonian coming of age tale about a high school student with a schizophrenic mother. The protagonist, Johannes, who bears a passing resemblance to Matt Damon, transfers to a new high school where every woman is beautiful - the only problem is most of the students hate him and want to make his life miserable. Meanwhile he has to deal with a mom that refuses to take her medication and makes the lives of everyone around her a living hell, his friends from outside school who are trying to pull him into a life of crime and alcohol and finally a thieving musician who refuses to give Johannes credit after stealing his lyrics for his latest hit. His situation appears hopeless and suicide seems like a good way out. How will he respond? Märt Pius does an excellent job portraying Johannes. His performance gave me flashbacks of high school and had me rooting him for like he was my own best friend. The scene where he is up front reading his biography in Swedish while being berated by the Swedish teacher and just after reading a note from his classmates filled with nasty things about him will stick with me for a long time. The supporting cast play their roles well. Linda Kolde is excellent as Liisa, a classmate with a vendetta against him and Saara Kadak is great as Bianka, a beautiful classmate with an infectious smile who feels sorry for Johanees. Highly recommended.