Analysis of the Movie 'Expelled' from a Sociological Perspective

For this Sociology On Screen assignment, I selected and analyzed the comedy movie, “Expelled”, directed by Alex Goyette and distributed by 20th Century Fox in the year of 2014. It all begins when Felix O 'Neil (Cameron Dallas), a troublesome teenager, gets expelled after recklessly pranking in Eastwood High School. He is a well-known prankster who rewired the fundraising money of the cheerleading team to a koala bear sanctuary, exposed incident photos of his teacher publicly, and hacked the vending machine and gave out free gums to his classmates. At first, he seems to be happy about his “early retirement”. Fearing that his parents will find out regarding his expulsion, Felix decides to falsify his report card so that his parents will not find

After watching the film, I start to contemplate about the meaning of life. Am I, as a student, defined based on how many A’s I get on my transcript? When people think of me, do they just use my GPA to conclude me as a person regardless of my other interests? I personally feel very connected to this film yet my experience is different than that of the main character. When I first came to the U.S., my quietness made me a deviant from the majority and I couldn’t even make a friend. During the film, some of the scenes somehow made me reminisce my past and learned how to appreciate what I have came through. Unlike the films that I watch in my spare time, this time I try to connect sociological concepts and topics to explore some parts of the movie. For instance, in the same scene in which Mr. Truman happens to steal the school’s money, I was thinking what social factors motivate him to commit such crime. As a white, male principal, he is part of the “Matrix of Power and Advantage”, who has advantageous abilities that allow him to “hold a number of statuses that are highly valued in society” (Parkhouse 2017). With high social status, Mr. Truman could afford losing some money instead of stealing the school’s budget to cover up his minor losses. In addition to deviance, I am able to assess the movie using concepts discussed in the topic of socialization. Interaction among other teenagers, especially his friends Katie and Danny, is how Felix finally accepts the ways of a group of which he is a part of. Peers, as an agent of socialization, has a profound impact on one’s development. People informally develop their sense of belonging to a group through socializing in school or public areas (Parkhouse 2017). Without the help of his friends, Felix would never deeply examine his thoughts on life and change his behavior and performance in school. My take-home message after watching this