Rating: 
Summary: Interesting, disturbing, and unfortunately true.
Review: I liked this movie. Though many compare it [it's director] to "Kids"...I offer a thought in Larry Clark's defense. He could not, perhaps would not want to, display the level of sexual content in Kids. Not because it doesn't happen...but because the movie would have gotten a justifiable NC-17 or banned. In this case...the characters are older, the situations are based very closely on real life events and people, and this is who those people were.
The dance club scene is also worth watching...as we see Brad Renfro on stage with many hot young men, dancing for a crowd at a gay club. His character is straight, but the scenery is nice and it illustrates the willingness of Marty's character to be bullied into things by his friend.
By the end of the movie, the consistency of the character acting throughout showed me that there was no real bad acting. But instead, we see talented actors playing space-cadet style characters to a tee. Having done some research into the plot line on the Internet after watching the movie...I found that even Renfro's evil demeanor in the murder, and the aimless panic of the band of cohorts seemed all the more realistic to me.
This movie is slow at times...especially after the plot is hatched. But it is a must see...and gives you a glimpse into the minds of kids today and what they are capable of. It also offers a haunting glimpse into the reality of how kids do things like we saw in Columbine, CO and other places. The more kids evolve, the more we treat them like children...while we tell them to grow up. This movie is teen angst at its most vicious.
Rating:
Summary: Provocative but good!
Review: This film bears a lot of resemblence to KIDS also directed by Larry Clark. Kids is better than Bully and I think it is mostly because Clark is too explicit this time and focuses a lot more on sex and nudity. It is always there in almost every dialogue scene to and sometimes it feels like to much. The strongest part of the film is it's description of reality. I think it bear a lot of resemblence to the Neorealistic approach among the Italian filmmamkers.
The supplements on the DVD is decent and the best thing is the interviews with the actors.
The Larry Clark interview is not very interesting he mostly speaks about why he casted the actors that he did. This is a must if you liked Kids. Otherwise you probably want to rent it.
Rating:
Summary: Surreal!
Review: I just happen to run across this movie and had heard some hype but still did not know the premise until actually watching. Very chilling, sad and strangely funny. I could not believe that slackers like this actually still exist anywhere outside of a Hollywood film then to learn that "Bully" was based on true events which took place in my state-too much!All of the characters are brilliantly portrayed and very convincing (esp. Brad Renfro who has some real-life problems). The kids seem to possess no moral fiber, no real compassion or understanding of human life. Their families don't seem to be terribly dysfunctional and yet they all sit around doing lots of drugs, having irresponsible, gratuitous sex and sponging off their folks. Only two had jobs! This lack of moral fiber provides the story with an evil villian-the bully, who is a real piece of work as he inflicts his violence on everyone. Of course, the rest of the slackers decide to band together and take him out. This is really where the film gets scary-their complete wild, reckless abandonment and disregard for human life. A riveting film with a fabulous cast-a definite hit in my books. Also must say that Brad Renfro sure did grow up nicely!
Rating: 
Summary: leaves a mark...
Review: Good film, the kind where after it's over you feel somehow affected by it and when that wears off and you drift back into reality, from this chaotic 2 hour trip you just had, it definately will leave its mark in your memory (a la Kids.) Definately worth the time and money... and one of the few movies I've gone and ordered right after watching I liked it that much. Fairly disturbing as well though (Requium For a Dream-esque.) Go ahead and at least rent it...
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: It's pretty interesting when you think about it but Brad Renro has been in two of the most highly acclaimed films of 2001 (Bully and his smaller role in the equally brilliant Ghost World starring Thora Birch and Steve Buschemi)but nobody has really seen anything by him since he made his debut in The Client with Susan Sarandon back in the early 90's when he was just a young teen. After seeing Kids when it first came out back in the mid- late 90's I was totally hooked to Larry Clark's work (Another Day in Paradise is also a great little film though it has two bigger stars and went straight to video). People either loved Kids or hated it (the same with Gummo)or people understood it or didn't understand it. Most people were turned onto Kids from word of mouth and really weren't smaller indie film fans and weren't expecting what they got. I guess the same can be said about Bully. People either love it or hate it. Yeah there is lots of nudity (in some scenes it's almost a soft porn)but to respond to one person's complaint... all the actresses and actors are 20 or over and weren't playing high school kids in this film. All of Clark's films come with some sort of controversary and you have to understand, indie films aren't your normal run of the mill bigger budget films and can get away with more and are able to shock you more. The things that happen in this film could and do happen everywhere in America and Clark shows and tells it like it is and doesn't water it down or doesn't cut any corners trying to show us anything. If this were a bigger budget film and able to hit larger auidences it would definetly be slapped with a nc-17 rating but since it wasn't it just hit small independent screens and was alsmot straight to video much like Clark's other work and slapped with a unrated sticker. It sad that many people will miss out on this film and it will go unnoticed by many but hopefully word of mouth will help this film like it did for other indie films because that's truly how they are noticed by a majority of the viewers. I forgot all about Bully and stubmled onto it at my local video store (which has two copies all the way at the bottom of the shelf)and instantly loved it and hope to get it on dvd soon. As for the stars...it's kinda sad to see the bigger name of Bijou Phillips billed over the true female lead Rachel Miner (who was married to Maccully Caulkin). Miner turns out a super performance while Phillips is on screen for a while and then comes back a little later. Renfro also turns in a super performance as does the rest of the cast (which is a great thing about smaller films like this where money and egos don't play a part in the performance of the actor and it's all heart). Like i said...it is loved or hated and indie films aren't for everyone and are alot more gritty and truthful and are allowed more than the bigger budgeted films most people are used to but films like these are real and don't shy away from anything and that's what makes them so amazing to watch. I totally agree with Roger Ebert's review...Bully is a Materpiece!
Rating:
Summary: BULLY FOR MR.CLARK
Review: SHORT AND SWEET IF YOU LIKED KIDZ YOU SHOULD BUY THIS DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: A Solid Movie
Review: I am confused as to why so many reviewers refer to this film as being "shock this or that". I grew up in the 80's & 90's, and the sex, drugs, and attitudes portrayed in "Kids" & "Bully" is not shocking at all, it's routine, and kind of boring. Of course it is mandatory when showing a story that revolves around teenagers and the lives they lead behind their parents backs. While I do question the need for so much nudity from these really young actors, it is obviously the directors style, so if this type of movie upsets you, then watch an after school special instead. The only difference is "Bully" will educate completley as opposed to something which people (mostly kids) will find ridiculous. Watch "Bully" for the true story it represents. It's quite good.
Rating:
Summary: Frightening look at a true story
Review: Bully is the kind of film that makes you wonder how far our society has fallen. Its a raw, haunting, frightening look at a group of teenagers with nothing else to do but get high, have sex and dissociate themselves from humanity. Its a difficult film to watch because you are constantly assaulted with images of brutality and sex and the murder scene is particularly gruesome. With that said, Bully is a great film. Larry Clark captures these teens world in a way you can't look away from. This film is a true story so you are seeing something that really happened which makes it all the more real. Its the story of Marty, a kid who has to rely on his abusive friend for rides to clubs and the beach. It all begins to change when Marty meets Lisa who gets the ball rolling on killing Bobby. There are no good guys or girls in this film. Everyone is a promiscuous, drug addicted kid with a mean streak. Bobby probably was the worst of them but Lisa and Marty especially were no different. Lisa and Bobby thought it was funny how this guy died! There is no real remorse at all. Bully is disturbing and you see it all in this one. Its also one of the best films of 2001.
Rating:
Summary: Wow, They're Dumb.
Review: This film does more than confirm a long-held theory of mine that even social degenerates have sex. It unapologetically tells an unpleasant tale of haphazard and fatal conflict resolution in a suburban setting lacking any guidance or vision of a world beyond itself with such realism that the viewer, already knowing what ultimately will come to pass, finds himself wishing someone with a brain cell will interject, "Hey, let's get a pizza instead." There is no reason for this murder to have happened. Larry Clark shows us the reason it did happen: Once the idea was given life, no one could think of a reason not to do it. Were it not based on a non-fiction account of a case in Florida, this film would no doubt be panned as lacking any sense of reality. (A common criticism of Clark's debut flick, "Kids.") Alas, the aimless zombies featured here do exist in larger numbers than any of us truly wants to admit. This is the only time I have seen them portrayed on the screen. They are the American Pie kids, without the charm or wit. They are the Clueless kids, without the introspection or class. They are Jay and Silent Bob, without the ability to utter anything approaching intelligent or a sense that a world exists beyond their lives and today. The only way one cannot be sincerely disturbed by this film is to deny its reality. It is not surprising that so many do the latter, since denial is the easier route. Naked bodies of teenaged girls do absolutely nothing for me. I did not find the nudity distracting at all. For those who can't see someone naked without calling attention to either how much they enjoy it or how much it offends them: This movie is not for you. A certain degree of maturity will be necessary to see that this movie has no protagonist, no heros, no one with whom the audience should empathize. This makes the film decidedly un-movie-like and, in the process, all that much more real.
Rating:
Summary: EXTREME TEEN SPLEEN
Review: Wading through the swamp of insipid teen flicks from contrived horror to gross-out sex comedies, one is not prepared for the scathingly dead-on visceral assault of "BULLY" (Lion's Gate). Reminiscent somewhat of "River's Edge," Larry Clark's total immersion into a Florida middle class suburban world of alienated, purposeless, bored, self-absorbed, amoral, post-modern teens has been adroitly adapted (by Zach Long & Roger Pullis) from Jim Schutze's electrifying novel of the same name. Brad Renfro is Marty, a troubled surfer who is attached to childhood pal Bobby (newcomer Nick Stahl) for rides to the beach and bars, in spite of almost constant physical and verbal abuse. There's more than an inference of repressed homosexuality and rage in their relationship and a mountain of self-loathing pressing down on Stahl's Bobby. Director Larry Clark ("Kids") delivers a shocker that is blatantly voyeuristic, repugnant and unflinching as we hang out and become intimate with these seemingly ordinary, seriously neglected and certainly unhinged teens. When Marty gets (has sex with) new girlfriend Lisa (Rachel Miner), Bobby turns his abuse toward her and her best friend Ally (Bijou Phillips). Annoyed, Lisa coldly and calculatingly hatches a plan to get Marty out of the picture once and for all. And everyone kind of agrees and goes along with the plan. And what's even worse, to a certain degree, so do we. We sure aren't rooting for Bobby because we see him as evil. Almost possessed. It's easy to assume that these things only happen to other people's kids in other neighborhoods. In this secret teen world in which we are privy, totally out of touch parents make ritualistic small talk to their stoned kids while the kids stash guns and knives and calmly announce they are going to a movie. This is not a tongue in cheek foray into farce violence morality a la Oliver Stone's "Natural Born Killers" but an almost documentary-like, in-your-face slice of time and life of these kids' lives on the fringe. A fringe that is ever encroaching on our seemingly secure suburban world. Larry Clark's examination of this dark milieu is uncompromising and it is also art. Kids like this exist and so do their parents. Pay attention. A masterpiece. Violence. Nudity. Lots of extras and a great commentary from director Clark.
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