STRUCK BY LIGHTNING

Chris Colfer’s Screenwriting Debut Is “Surprise Hit” At Tribeca Film Festival

The critics have spoken: Struck By Lightning, Chris Colfer’s directorial screenwriting debut, is a hit!

Colfer stars in the movie, a black comedy about blackmailing the popular high-school kids into taking part in Colfer’s pet project, a literary magazine that he thinks will improve his chances of getting into his dream school, the journalism program at Northwestern. (Check the trailer here.)

Here’s what the critics had to say. Forbes‘ Roger Friedman:

Colfer has been struck by lightning, since his movie– directed with a charming light touch by Brian Dannelly–is a total hit. If this were Sundance, people would be calling “Struck by Lightning” the new “Juno” or “Napoleon Dynamite”…

Playing Carson’s grandmother, and Janney’s mother, is the legendary and amazing Polly Bergen. She’s lovely in all of her scenes, and it was quite a get for producer David Perlmut and co. to get her. After the screening, I asked Colfer if he really knew what a star she was, and he rattled off a bunch of her credits. “She’s like a touchstone for me,” he said. The kid is nice, and he’s going places.

AfterElton’s Brian Juergens:

The best question came last – it was asked by a young-sounding British woman, who directed the question at one of the film’s young producers and uncredited costars, Robert Aguire. She asked what it was about Chris’s script that attracted him to the project, and he replied that it was Chris himself – his voice as a writer – that sold him on it. It was a bit of an odd moment, actually – until Chris said, very loudly, “You look so familiar!” Turns out it was Emma Watson from the Harry Potter movies. Watson added, “I’m a huge fan of your movie,” and Aguire yelled, “We love you, Emma!”

It’s hard not to get swept up in the energy of a cast, crew, and their fans as they launch a new project that clearly was made with buckets of love and hard work. Best of luck to all of them in the hopes that Struck By Lightning takes the world by storm.

Oh, and this isn’t really critical praise, but we thought we’d share. E!’s Marc Malkin says Colfer wouldn’t kick Matt Bomer out of bed/off set:

What definitely didn’t give him nightmares was working with White Collar hunk Matt Bomer on Glee. “That guy’s perfect,” Colfer said, adding with a laugh, “It’s just obnoxious how perfect he is.”

He also praised Bomer for coming out of the closet as a gay man in February when he thanked his longtime partner, publicist Simon Halls, during an awards acceptance speech. “I’m very proud of him,” Colfer said. “I think that’s going to be very much the norm very soon.”

Aww. Gay actor brotherly love!

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