Tony Bill

[7] The same year she won an Oscar for My Cousin Vinny, Marisa Tomei also made an immeasurable contribution to this romantic drama about a Minneapolis waitress who falls in love with a shy, quiet bus boy (Christian Slater) who rescues her from an assault. The two are an odd couple, but seem to make sense together. Unfortunately, the specter of tragedy hangs over them, …

[8] Writer Alan Ormsby and director Tony Bill create a compelling coming-of-age story that avoids two of the greatest pitfalls of the genre: it doesn’t talk down to its subjects and it doesn’t wallow in sentimentality. Chris Makepeace and Adam Baldwin give fine performances as the ‘new kid’ and the ‘mysterious loaner,’ respectively. Their unlikely friendship develops believably and becomes the heart of the movie. …