Taglines: A lesson in love for non-believers.
Halley is a young high school student who is disillusioned with love after seeing the many dysfunctional relationships around her. Her parents are now divorced and her father has a new young girlfriend she doesn’t care for too much. Her mother is now always alone; and her sister is so overwhelmed by her upcoming wedding that she barely leaves the house anymore.
On top of that, the shallowness of all the girls and guys at her school convinces Halley that finding true love is impossible. A tragic accident, however, leads her to meeting Macon, and suddenly Halley finds that true love can occur under unusual circumstances.
How to Deal is a romantic comedy film directed by Clare Kilner and starring Mandy Moore, Allison Janney and Trent Ford. It is based on two novels by Sarah Dessen which were That Summer and Someone like You.
Halley Marie Martin (Mandy Moore) is a 17-year-old high school student who is disillusioned with love after seeing many dysfunctional relationships around her. Her parents are now divorced and her father, Len Martin (Peter Gallagher), a radio talk show host, has a new young girlfriend that the entire family despises; mainly because she’s the reason for the divorce.
Her mother, Lydia (Allison Janney), is now always alone while her sister, Ashley, is so overwhelmed by her upcoming wedding with Lewis Warsher that she barely exists in the house anymore. On top of that, the shallowness of all the girls and guys at her school convinces Halley that finding true love is impossible.
When Halley walks in on her best friend Scarlett having sex with her boyfriend (Scarlett’s boyfriend, not Halley’s), the high school soccer champ, Michael Sherwood, Halley tries to warn her of the complications that lie ahead. Ignoring her advice, Scarlett embarks on a summer fling with Michael.
In the meantime, Halley must deal with Ashley and the rest of the Martins must deal with her soon-to-be in-laws, Lewis’ overbearing Southern parents, who still have a maid, who just happens to be African-American. In the meantime, Halley runs into classmate Macon Forrester, a slacker who never shows up for biology and is more interested in having fun than school work. He is Michael Sherwood’s best friend.
Then a few weeks later, tragedy strikes. Michael dies of a heart defect on the soccer field while Halley, Scarlett and other classmates watch helplessly. This event changes the lives of Halley and Scarlett forever. While Scarlett does her best to look beautiful for Michael at his funeral, Macon gives a moving speech about his friend. Struggling with Michael’s death, Scarlett, at age sixteen, soon learns that she is pregnant with his child. With Halley at her side, Scarlett reveals the pregnancy to her mother.
Directed by: Clare Kilner
Starring: Mandy Moore, Trent Ford, Dylan Baker, Alexandra Holden, Dylan Baker, Nina Foch, Connie Ray, Mary Catherine Garrison
Screenplay by: Neena Beber
Production Design by: Dan Davis
Cinematography by: Eric Alan Edwards
Film Editing by: Shawna Callahan, Janice Hampton
Costume Design by: Alexandra Welker
Set Decoration by: Carolyn ‘Cal’ Loucks
Music by: David Kitay
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual content, drug material, language and some thematic elements.
Studio: New Line Cinema
Release Date: July 18, 2003
