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A familiar outline takes some clever and funny turns in this big-hearted coming-of-ageromance.

By Annlee EllingsonSeptember 26, 2013 , 12:00 p.m.

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Review: Not your usual geeks in 'Secret Lives ofDorks'

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The setup of "The Secret Lives of Dorks" may be familiar:Comic-book geek Payton (Gaelan Connell) is in love withcheerleader Carrie (Riley Voelkel), who already has a jockboyfriend, Clark (Beau Mirchoff), while fellow nerdSamantha (Vanessa Marano) pines for Payton. But fromthere, Johnny Severin and Nicholas David Brandt's otherwiseclever and original script takes an unexpected turn at nearlyevery intersection, resulting in a funny and big-heartedcoming-of-age romance.

For one thing, the voiceover narration isn't limited to Payton,slipping into Carrie's point-of-view as she decides to help himwoo Samantha, mostly to divert the dork's attention fromherself. But there's no villain here, not even Clark, who in anyother high-school movie would fulfill the bully role. Instead,he goes along with Carrie's project while he pursues his ownmysterious new pastime involving a crash course in comicbooks.

Meanwhile, there's a rich supporting cast that offers constanthumorous chatter, despite some awkwardly shoehornedappearances by Seymour Cassel as the school principal. JimBelushi, for example, plays Payton's Mike Ditka-obsesseddad, a gym coach who's teaching his 6-year-old daughter theins and outs of Bears football and on whom one of his fellowteachers (Jennifer Tilly) has an irrepressible crush.

Director Salomé Breziner employs animation by Ben Bjelajacto illustrate Payton's wild speculations when his dad asks,"What's the worst that could happen?" and she adds fancifulenactments of texts rather than static screen messages for adynamic visual palette with a hip rock 'n' roll soundtrack.

-------------------------------

"The Secret Lives of Dorks"

MPAA rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual contentthroughout, and for language.

Running time: 1 hour, 31 minutes.

Playing: At AMC Universal City, Los Angeles; UltraStarUltraLuxe Anaheim 14; Muvico Thousand Oaks 14. Also onVOD.

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Gaelan Connell and Vanessa Marano as Payton and Samantha in "The Secret Lives of Dorks." (Handout / September 26,2013)

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