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Angus is a 1995 coming-of-age comedy film directed by Patrick Read Johnson. The cast includes Charlie Talbert and James Van Der Beek in their first film roles, along with Chris Owen, Ariana Richards, George C. Scott, Kathy Bates, and Rita Moreno. Angus is based on the short story "A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune" by Chris Crutcher, from his collection Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories. It is mostly filmed in Owatonna, Minnesota at Owatonna Senior High School. Plot Angus Bethune is an obese teenage boy living in Minnesota who, despite his talents in football and science, holds deep insecurities. Since kindergarten, he has been harassed by handsome, cruel Rick Sanford and his cohorts for not being "normal". His only friend is Troy Wedberg, another social outcast. Angus has feelings for Melissa Lefevre, a cheerleader who is dating Rick. Tired of Rick's abuse, Angus applies to a magnet school where he hopes to be free of the bullying. Rick, well aware of Angus' feelings for Melissa, rigs a school election so that Angus and Melissa will dance together in the upcoming freshman Winter Ball as King and Queen, respectively. After the stunt, the principal forbids Angus to lay a hand on Rick, or he would be expelled and lose his chance to go to the magnet school. To prepare for the dance, Angus gets help from Troy, his mother Meg, and his narcoleptic grandfather Ivan. Angus takes dancing lessons with Madame Rulenska, but the lessons go badly. Despite Angus' request for a black tuxedo, Ivan purchases him a plum suit and tells him he can be normal and an individual at the same time. Ivan reasons that running away to another school will not solve anything and that he needs to stand up to Rick. One day after school, Rick and his friends kidnap Troy and ask him for anything that would embarrass Angus at the Winter Ball. Troy refuses to help them, but ends up breaking his arm as he tries to get away. Meanwhile, Angus helps Ivan prepare for his wedding to his fiancée April. As Angus waits outside Ivan's room on the day of the wedding, he confides to him about how he wishes he could stand up to Rick and tell Melissa how he feels. When Angus tries to wake Ivan, he quickly discovers that Ivan has died and tells the wedding guests. Distraught, Angus opts to stay home for a few days trying to cope with Ivan's death. Out of fear, Troy gives Rick a videotape containing footage of Angus practicing his dancing with an inflatable doll while confessing his feelings for Melissa. While visiting Angus to offer his condolences, an argument ensues between the two friends. Angus asserts he won't go to the Winter Ball because he doesn't want to be humiliated by Rick again and needs to cope with his grandfather's death. Later that week, Angus receives a box from April containing the plum suit that he had earlier rejected. In that moment, Angus realizes Ivan was right all along: he needs to stand up for himself and face Rick, or nothing will change. He rejects an interview from the magnet school and marches to the dance in the school gymnasium wearing the plum suit. Outside, Troy warns Angus to go back home at once, explaining that Rick is planning a terrible prank on him. Angus refuses, determined to stand up to Rick. Inside, Angus converses with Melissa for the first time. Before they can dance as King and Queen, Rick plays Troy's videotape on the monitors, prompting laughter from students. A humiliated Melissa punches Rick in the face and runs out in tears. Angus follows her, infuriated at Troy for his betrayal. Angus apologizes to Melissa, but she does not blame him. Instead, she reveals her disgust with Rick and confesses to Angus that she is bulimic. Angus learns that Melissa likes him more than Rick because he is kind and respectful of others. Finding common ground, they go back inside and dance, with Melissa helping him out with some of the steps. When Rick scolds Melissa, Angus comes to her defense. Rick punches Angus, breaking his nose and sending him crashing through a table. Angus defiantly rises to his feet and repeatedly pushes Rick until he falls to the ground, saying no matter how many times Rick knocks him down, he will always get back up. When Angus gives Rick a choice to accept others who are different from him, Rick selfishly replies, "Whatever I am, it's something you're never gonna be," to which Angus retorts, "Thank God!" The students applaud Angus and even Rick's friends abandon him. Melissa dances with Angus again and Troy enacts revenge on Rick by breaking his nose with his cast. Melissa asks Angus to walk her home, and she kisses him on the cheek. Angus rejects an offer to transfer to the magnet school, realizing that his grandfather was right and that he doesn't have to run away anymore. Angus mentions Rick was suspended for his video prank and for breaking Troy's arm. He also mentions that Rick's popularity with the other students suffered since Angus stood up to him and thus, they have no reason to fear him anymore. Alternate cut The script was originally more faithful to its source material, with the storyline of Angus having a gay father included among the filmed scenes. However, during a test screening in Orange County, an audience member reacted with a homophobic insult to the gay-related plot line. Based on this incident, the studio decided on editing out the character and any gay-related story lines out of the final film, to the dismay of the cast and crew. Deleted and extended scenes are integrated into the cut-for-television version of the film to make up running time. Cast Charlie Talbert as Angus Bethune Chris Owen as Troy Wedberg Kathy Bates as Meg Bethune George C. Scott as Grandpa Ivan Bethune James Van Der Beek as Rick Sanford Ariana Richards as Melissa Lefevre Rita Moreno as Madame Rulenska Wesley Mann as Mr. Kessler Robert Curtis Brown as Alexander Anna Thompson as April Thomas Kevin Connolly as Andy Lawrence Pressman as Principal Metcalf Reception Box office Angus was released theatrically in North America on Friday, September 15, 1995, on 1,154 screens, debuting in eighth place amidst a crowded box office. It opened against Hackers and Clockers, while To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar, Dangerous Minds, The Usual Suspects, and Braveheart were still having a strong showing in box office numbers. To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar ultimately won the weekend with $6,544,960 as it expanded to 1,448 screens. In its second weekend, Sept 22–24, the film slipped to twelfth place with $1,314,839 from 1,156 screens, its widest release (a percentage drop of 31.3%). Se7en opened that weekend and won the box office with $13,949,807 from 2,441 screens. Critical response Angus has a 67% "fresh" rating on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, based on 18 reviews. Though some critics considered the film's underdog story familiar and formulaic, others commended Angus for its accurate portrayal of high school life compared to sim.... Discover the Chris Angus popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Chris Angus books.