The Novice (film)

The Novice is a 2021 American psychological sports drama film written and directed by Lauren Hadaway in her feature directorial debut. Starring Isabelle Fuhrman, Amy Forsyth, Dilone, Charlotte Ubben, Jonathan Cherry, and Kate Drummond, the film follows an obsessive university freshman who joins the rowing team.

The Novice had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 13, 2021, where Fuhrman won the Best Actress award. The film was theatrically released in the United States on December 17, 2021, to widespread acclaim, with particular praise for Hadaway's direction. It earned five nominations at the 37th Independent Spirit Awards, including Best Film and Best Director for Hadaway. The film Is filmed at Trent University.

Plot
After a physics class in which she takes the same exam multiple times over, obsessively competitive college freshman Alex Dall sets out to join the Wellington College Novice Rowing Program. Shortly after the first training session her thoughts become occupied with the sport - in particular with the consistent form practiced while rowing.

Jamie Brill, another freshman taking up rowing as a means to attain a much needed athletic scholarship, is quickly labeled as the "best novice" on the team to the chagrin of Alex - which further fuels her obsessive drive. Over time, Alex improves her rowing times at the detriment of her academic performance, and her and Jamie are moved into the varsity team. While Jamie quickly adapts to the new environment, Alex fails to fit in both socially and athletically, and accidentally knocks herself out during a major race.

Moved back to the novice team, Alex loses her already tenuous friendship with Jamie - and during the first joint novice/varsity practice passes out while exercising and urinates herself. After Erin, a varsity rower and trainer, outlines the criteria to officially make varsity but expresses doubt in Alex due to her small stature, Alex begins vigorously practicing alone, but is interrupted by Coach Pete who has been taking increasing notice of her potentially self-harmful level of commitment. Pete initially attempts to dissuade Alex from working so hard, but eventually offers to assist her in using a scull to practice alone during winter break.

Alex steadily improves as a rower by practicing over fall break, and begins a romance with Dani, her former teaching assistant. Alex and Jamie are eager to try out for the "1V boat" which the best members of the team row on, but are denied the opportunity by Coaches Pete and Edwards. Meanwhile, Alex's health deteriorates, with a wound on her palm frequently bleeding.

In the spring, Alex and Jamie race to determine who will take the spot of a 1V Rower who has left the team due to a broken collarbone. Alex loses, sensing that the team was assisting the more popular Jamie by sandbagging while rowing on Alex's boat. Dejected, Alex cuts herself near her ribs, while an infection from the wound on her palm begins to spread up her arm. Dani breaks up with Alex due to her increasingly destructive behavior. Alex accuses Jamie of cheating to win the spot, and Jamie tells her that she learned that despite letting Jamie think she needed the scholarship, she's just another silver spoon student. Jamie says she had Alex's back before, but now no one on the team has any respect for Alex.

In the last week of the season the team has a casual, friendly competition, but Alex publicly declares she will break Highsmith's team record. The girls row in individual boats in the dark hours of a cold early morning. Alex collides her boat into Highsmith's and is thrown into the water, but climbs back on and continues rowing. The rule is row in rain but never lightning, and the rest of the team starts to rows back owing to the increasing severity of the storm, but Alex persists despite their warnings.

Alex finishes the race and looks at her watch. She returns to the training building to the silent shock of her team members and coaches. She erases her name from the team chalkboard and walks away.

Cast

 * Isabelle Fuhrman as Alex Dall
 * Amy Forsyth as Jamie Brill
 * Dilone as Dani
 * Jonathan Cherry as Coach Pete
 * Kate Drummond as Coach Edwards
 * Jeni Ross as Winona
 * Eve Kanyo as Groundman
 * Nikki Duval as Try-Hard
 * Charlotte Ubben as Erin
 * Sage Irvine as Janssen
 * Chantelle Bishop as Highsmith

Release
The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 13, 2021. There, it won the Best U.S. Narrative Feature Film prize.

In August 2021, it was announced that IFC Films acquired North American distribution rights to the film, which was released in select theaters and on demand and digital platforms on December 17, 2021.

Box office
In its opening weekend, the film earned $12,301 from 36 theaters for a per screen average of $341. In its second weekend, it made $1,034 from only nine theaters. The film dropped to six theaters in its third weekend and earned $1,222.

Critical response
The film has a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 60 reviews, with an average rating of 7.80/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "A remarkable first feature for writer-director Lauren Hadaway, The Novice paints a thrilling -- and disturbing -- portrait of obsession." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 87 out of 100, based on 14 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Jourdain Searles of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a positive review and wrote, "A film this raw made with such a steady, assured hand only comes along once in a while. We should take notice." Kate Erbland of IndieWire graded the film a B+ and wrote, "The film’s tense score, from composer Alex Weston, adds to the sense that The Novice is more a horror film than anything else, with a series of intriguing, vintage song choices alternately cutting and upping that tension..." Hoi-Tran Bui of Slash Film rated it an 8 out of 10 and wrote, "It's an impressive feat of incisively dark tone, even if the plot and characters are little more than shadows."

Alex Saveliev of Film Threat also rated the film an 8 out of 10 and wrote, "Hadaway may be a novice at helming feature-length films, but that doesn’t make her any less of a visionary."