Whole New Thing

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Whole New Thing ★★ 2005

Precocious 13-year-old Emerson (Webber in his feature debut) has been home-schooled by his hippie parents Kaya (Jenkins) and Rog (Joy). Worried about his social skills, Kaya decides androgynous Emerson should now attend public school, where he's promptly beaten up, which Emerson takes with remarkable poise. He's not so self-possessed about his gay middle-aged English teacher, Don (McIvor), on whom Emerson develops a major crush. Don fends off Emerson's inappropriate advances while suffering through a midlife crisis—one shared by Emerson's parents, who are having marital problems. 92m/C DVD . CA Rebecca Jenkins, Robert Joy, Callum Keith Rennie, Daniel McIvor, Aaron Webber; D: Amnon Buchbinder; W: Daniel McIvor, Amnon Buchbinder; C: Christopher Ball; M: David Buchbinder.