I went into Lean on Pete with literally no information other than there was a horse in the film, and what a film this turned out to be!
Charlie Plummer stars as a teenager who lives with his loving but kind of deadbeat father in a state of borderline poverty. After meeting Del (Steve Buscemi) he gets a job helping him with horses, this set up leads us to very unexpected places as a chain reaction of unfortunate events and situations present themselves.
Plummer does a fantastic job and owns the role pitch perfectly, also very good here is Steve Buscemi (when isn’t he?) , Yes he plays into the stereotype that he’s built up of the years but it still works because he plays it so so well.
Lean On Pete is for the most part fairly reserved which really exaggerates when it isn’t and we got some really big gasps in the audience during those moments, and in addition a walkout!
With interesting dialogue that holds your attention, strong performances and an emotional core, Lean On Pete soars with potential, highly recommended.