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The Battle of Shaker Heights

Play trailer Poster for The Battle of Shaker Heights PG-13 2003 1h 18m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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39% Tomatometer 59 Reviews 49% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
A quirky teen with a penchant for war reenactments, Kelly Ernswiler (Shia La Beouf) obsesses over military tactics with his buddy Bart (Elden Henson). The school bully (Billy Kay) is one of Kelly's regular headaches, and he also has to deal with a frustrating situation at home, where his father (William Sadler) is a recovering drug addict. Kelly's life gets even more complicated when he falls for Tabby (Amy Smart), Bart's pretty and soon-to-be-wed older sister.

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The Battle of Shaker Heights

The Battle of Shaker Heights

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Critics Consensus

LaBeouf is appealing, but The Battle of Shaker Heights feels too watered down and disjointed.

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Critics Reviews

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J. R. Jones Chicago Reader 04/06/2010
After the movie scored poorly at a test screening, Miramax vice president Rick Schwartz bullied directors Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin into playing up the comedic elements and soft-pedaling the family drama. Go to Full Review Eric Harrison Houston Chronicle 10/03/2003
C-
The film is well-acted and looks good, but it's so inconsequential and bland that you wonder what was it about the script that made anyone think it would make an interesting movie. Go to Full Review Richard Roeper Ebert & Roeper 09/02/2003
It's too much going on, but I think that as was the case with Stolen Summer, the actors rise above the material and make it worth seeing. Go to Full Review Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com 09/02/2020
1.5/4.0
Does anyone in this film actually care about anyone beyond themselves? Go to Full Review Felix Vasquez Jr. Cinema Crazed 04/29/2009
Suffers from a terrible script with grossly under-developed sub-plots and characters... Go to Full Review Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com 11/04/2007
3/5
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Audience Reviews

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Shaun K @RT01847645 09/09/2023 I love movies that do a really good job of showing you a little slice of life. This movie does that well, though there were a couple of moments that felt a little unlikely. See more don s @RT97868663 12/30/2015 An odd little indie spotlighting a teen who dislikes his father and re-enacts battles from past wars. Average performances by the actors, but one can't expect more when the story is so simple and the characters are merely marionettes that live only for the writers. Amy Smart and Shiri Appleby almost save this movie. See more 09/20/2015 Shia carries what was probably a great script. It's a bit uneven because of the genre shift in the editing room, but in the end, to cap off season two of project greenlight, it really landed for me. See more 09/20/2015 Shia carries what was probably a great script. It's a bit uneven because of the genre shift in the editing room, but in the end, to cap off season two of project greenlight, it really landed for me. See more Stephen S @GDLSkorne 04/27/2015 Pretty dumb, though kind of interesting. I like the military reenactment angle for a comedy, but they don't really use it to their advantage much to truly distinguish this film. The reenactment scene towards the end of the film is still pretty funny though. See more 09/16/2014 This movie may have one of the worst covers ever, but the film itself was fantastic. I have realized that Shia LaBeouf is so fun to watch as long as he sticks with quirky, funny, nerdy characters like he plays in this film. He was hilarious and the movie had plenty of funny moments. It was very short and to the point without a lot of filler so it moved along at a nice pace and only at the end did it seem to lose some of its luster. There were some dramatic moments and a little lesson to be learned in the end, but overall this was a great film all around and anyone looking for a comedy with some heart, check this little know film out. See more Read all reviews
The Battle of Shaker Heights

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Cast & Crew

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Kyle Rankin

Director

Efram Potelle

Director

Shia LaBeouf

Kelly Ernswiler

Elden Henson

Bart Bowland

Amy Smart

Tabby

Billy Kay

Lance

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The Battle of Shaker Heights

Shia La Beouf in Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Shia La Beouf (L) and Amy Smart in Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Shiri Appleby (L) and Shia La Beouf in Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Shia La Beouf (L) and Elden Henson in Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Writer Erica Beeney (L) & producer Jeff Balis on the set of Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Writer Erica Beeney on the set of Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Shia La Beouf in Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Co-directors Kyle Rankin (L) & Efram Potelle (C) & producer Chris Moore (R) on the set of Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Shia La Beouf in Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin's THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. Shia La Beouf (L) and directors Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin on the set of THE BATTLE OF SHAKER HEIGHTS. View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A quirky teen with a penchant for war reenactments, Kelly Ernswiler (Shia La Beouf) obsesses over military tactics with his buddy Bart (Elden Henson). The school bully (Billy Kay) is one of Kelly's regular headaches, and he also has to deal with a frustrating situation at home, where his father (William Sadler) is a recovering drug addict. Kelly's life gets even more complicated when he falls for Tabby (Amy Smart), Bart's pretty and soon-to-be-wed older sister.
Director
Kyle Rankin, Efram Potelle
Producer
Chris Moore, Jeff Balis
Screenwriter
Erica Beeney
Distributor
Miramax Films
Production Co
Universal/Universal Int
Rating
PG-13 (Language|Some Drug References)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 15, 2003, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$279.3K
Runtime
1h 18m
Sound Mix
Surround
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