George (Freddie Highmore) is a smart and creative teenager living in Manhattan with his mother Vivian (Rita Wilson) and stepfather Jack (Sam Robards). This young man has taken into consideration the desolation of the planet and the follies of humankind and come down with a bad case of despair about his fate. "We live alone; we die alone; everything else is an illusion," he says. His energy drained, he decides there is no point in working hard in his last year of high school when there is no hope that things will get better.
George's one interest is drawing and instead of doing homework in math, English, and art, he doodles pages and pages of sketches. With graduation just months away, having received a warning from the principal (Blair Underwood) that he needs to get his act together or risk not graduating, he is befriended by Sally (Emma Roberts), who is fascinated by his rebellious nature. She introduces him to her world of fashionable parties and night clubs. George takes her to galleries and shows her the adventures available to those who skip school. Although he is soon madly in love with Sally and the way in which her presence has animated his lonely life, he is unable to verbalize his feelings. She introduces him to her promiscuous mom (Elizabeth Reaser), and he lets her accompany him on a visit to the Brooklyn loft of Dustin (Michael Angarano), a school alumnus who is an abstract painter. George considers him as his mentor. Dustin is attracted to Sally who is getting impatient with George's emotional immaturity.
Writer and director Gavin Wiesen has struck gold in casting Freddie Highmore (Finding Neverland, August Rush) and Emma Roberts (Nancy Drew) as the two lead characters in this spunky coming-of-age drama. Sally offers George a new world of possibilities but he has to seize the moment. As a kid, he probably read Dr. Seuss who observed: "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."
As graduation nears, George learns that he must make up all the work he's skipped, a challenge complicated by changes in his family life and his relationship with Sally. His art teacher (Jarlath Conroy) challenges him to do one painting that conveys his passion and is fearless, bold, and authentic. As is usually the case, coming-of-age is never a solo act; it usually requires the encouragement and support of many different people. That is the inspiring message of The Art of Getting By, and it is one that all teenagers would do well to remember.
