Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Usamah Harvey The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Kamila Bell This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Film Watchin Fool My Score: 5.6Terri is not a movie meant to wow you and primarily is a film about the struggle of a young 15 year old named Terri to get through everyday life. He is overweight, a social reject, wears pajamas to school, and lives with a dying uncle to name a few. It is fair to say that this movie is fairly depressing, but it has some comic relief.Terri is played by Jacob Wysocki, who gives a great performance and overall the acting is impressive. John C. Reilly is very solid as Principal Fitzgerald. Truthfully, the story doesn't offer much outside of the struggles of an overweight 15 year old, who is having to deal with a ton of unfortunate stress. I would only recommend to viewers who are interested in seeing a movie that really is about a struggling teen as it offers very little outside of that.

FilmStallion Terri comes off as your typical indie film with awkward characters dealing with unique, yet realistic situations. Several times in the film it felt as if long time micro-budget indie director Azazel Jacobs, and screenwriter Patrick Dewitt were trying to be different because that what indie films are supposed to do, but their strong cast refuses to color inside the lines and let that happen.Newcomer Wysocki brings a true sense of realism as the title character Terri. He is an awkward outsider who doesn't fit in with the "normal" crowd in high school. After a series of late tardies and his refusal to wear anything other than pajamas to school he is sent to the principal's office where Mr. Fitzgerald (Reilly) takes an interest and gives the lost kid a sense of hope.John C. Reilly is no stranger to the indie scene with scores of roles in smaller films including recently in Cedar Rapids and Cyrus. Reilly easily blends in as an actor into any size of film no matter how large or small. He knows when to turn up the silly, or ease into the dark side. Reilly finds the perfect balance in Terri.The supporting cast discovers ways to make their mark as well. Bridger Zadina finds laughs as Terri's deeply disturbed new friend with scores of his own problems. Olivia Crocicchia, best known for her role as Denis Leary's daughter, Katy, on the long running television hit Rescue Me, has no trouble as the nice teenage girl slipping down the wrong path. She shows great promise, and is a role or two away from finding herself on the next big thing list. It was also nice to see Creed Bratton break away from his hilariously bizarre character on The Office. It's stunning to see him in a serious role.Terri had many chances to slip into the pit holes that bring down any hopeful indie film, but finds away to dance over the trouble. Just when the film felt like it was being indie for Indies' sake it threw a curveball…and this is one audience member who is glad that some film's still attempt to be different.For more quick reviews check out www.FilmStallion.com

Turfseer Another quirky indie comes down the pike by the name of 'Terri'. It's about an obese kid who goes to school in his pajamas and tries to cope in a world of peers who are against him. 'Terri' basically fits my definition of the classic quirky indie which puts forth a "quirky protagonist who must go on a journey of self-discovery, shedding a repressed upbringing while thwarting the goals of a reactionary group that wishes to maintain the status quo." Here the "reactionary" group consists of the bullies who mock Terri and other ostracized kids at the school as well as unsympathetic teachers, who all seem to feel that any acts of kindness toward their students would be detrimental to their overall growth.Other quirky indies such as 'The Descendants', have a protagonist that begins as a member of a reactionary group, but then rebels against them (think of George Clooney's character taking a stand against those members of his family who side with the developers). With Terri, there's a variation on the common theme: he must shed his repressed upbringing but is never part of the reactionary group he's opposed to. In fact, Terri is an outcast from that group, from day one! In contrast to the punks at school, Terri actually has a good heart. This is manifested in his loving concern for his Uncle James, who is afflicted with early onset Alzheimer's. Terri's issues revolve around lack of self-esteem, exacerbated by the bullying at school as well as a wellspring of anger that sometimes emerges at inopportune times. Early on, after trapping mice in the attic, Terri begins trapping mice in the woods which upsets Uncle James, as he feels Terri might be getting enjoyment from the act of killing instead of merely taking care of a rodent problem.Enter John C. Reilly as Assistant Principal Mr. Fitzgerald, who appears to be in charge of all the school misfits. Fitzgerald is also an oddball himself, and pretends to yell at his charges behind closed doors, only to reassure them that's it's only an act. Fitzgerald tells the kids that the 'tough guy act' is primarily for the benefit of his secretary, Mrs. Hamish, who he views as needing some kind of invigoration as she is gravely ill and about to kick the proverbial bucket.A good part of the film revolves around Terri bonding with the kindly Mr. Fitzgerald. At first Terri feels betrayed by Fitzgerald after he claims to be giving Terri an exclusive peek at a childhood yearbook . But when Chad Markson (Terri's new potential friend and fellow outcast) informs Terri that Fitzgerald also let him take a look at the 'exclusive' yearbook, Terri turns on him, in a fit of jealousy. Later, Terri apologizes to Chad for 'losing it' and eventually grows closer to Fitzgerald, who by film's end, has morphed into the teenager's good 'buddy'.The plot thickens when Terri sticks up for the cute Heather Mills, who is also the victim of classroom bullies. Soon afterward Terri, Heather and Chad are popping pills (Uncle James' Alzheimer medication), down in the basement of Terri's home and strange things ensue. For one, Chad accepts a dare to urinate on his own pants. Later, Heather strips to her underclothes, and offers to have some kind of sexual contact with Terri. The shy Terri knows his limits and declines, but clearly Heather's offer has done wonders for his self-esteem.Nothing much happens after that! Fitzgerald takes Terri and Chad to Mrs. Hamish's funeral and later Fitzgerald reveals to Terri that he's been having some problems with his wife at home. The conflict with the bullies at school has been dropped and Fitzgerald never goes mano a mano with any of his disinterested colleagues.I'm sure 'Terri' has a good many boosters who are attracted to the offbeat characters and situations. But my problem with this kind of 'quirky' dramedy, is that there's something inherently distasteful in films of this ilk. Somehow the quirky outcasts (despite a few shortcomings) always manage to be of high noble stock, and the antagonists who they're pitted against, invariably are rotten to the core. It's a formula that's repeated over and over again and I find myself not wanting to root for the Terri's of this world, precisely because their underdog status is so undeserved (just about anyone would look good, if they were pitted against such nasty opponents).I enjoy watching John C. Reilly since he's in so many films and I always wonder what kind of character he's going to take on next. Here he's a sweet guy who's helping kids who need some positive reinforcement. Jacob Wysocki ably conveys the loner Terri but the character is too distasteful at times to be considered even near heroic. The same goes for Bridger Zadina as the equally weird Chad, who's urination routine at film's end, is also thoroughly off-putting. I kept wondering why Olivia Crocicchia as Heather ends up on the misfit list, considering that she's the cutest girl in the school. Finally, there's Creed Bratton as Uncle James. Catch the DVD extras and you'll be amazed that Bratton is a sensational blues singer and guitarist. Of course he should be, as he's the former member of the Grass Roots, the eminent pop rock band from the 60s.

uhchilly Like other reviewers here I found the characters very poorly written, each one beginning and ending as an non-evolving caricature. The main character is someone who is seems content with his life as it is and has settled in to the role of caregiver to his uncle and apathetically likable outcast in his school.The films approach seems to be one of turning Terri's life experiences into utter banality in order to cope with the weight of their drama.Every character, especially Terri, has a shoulder-shrugged look at everything that goes on in the film. It's as though everyone is interacting with each other as though they have been desensitized to the point where even the most obnoxious behaviour is carried out with the the vigour of a sloth crawling along a tree branch to get to a leaf. That is this films ENORMOUS problem: in the end everything that occurs is treated with such a dull, tedious, and bored outlook that even the message of acceptance of who you are becomes a resignation more than a inspiration. Watching the last half of this movie was one of the most excruciating exercises in misplaced hopefulness I have ever experienced.