the present being the most important thing, not the past. As Malerie is leaving, she asks Carson if they are friends. He says they are best friends. Carson decides that there is one story left to write; his own. He explains how he realized, despite everything he went through, he did get other students to write for the literary magazine. Now he is truly happy. He leaves, going outside as thunder starts. It takes over three days for people to find Carson's body. Many people, including the principal and the students who hated him, come to the funeral. It is shown that Carson did leave an impression on everyone he knew. Malerie takes over as president of the writers' club, while Sheryl visits her mother in assisted care. Cast Release The film had its world premiere at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival on 21 April 2012. The film was released on VOD prior to its theatrical release on 11 January 2013. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 21 May 2013. Critical reception Struck by Lightning received mixed reviews, holding a Metacritic score of 41, and a Rotten Tomatoes score of 32%. The most common complaint from reviewers was the fact that Colfer's character came off as too arrogant and cynical, and didn't manage to be likeable. Many reviews agreed that the dialogue was witty and funny and that the cast gave strong performances. Many critics also praised Colfer's debut as a screenwriter. Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave the movie a B−, writing, "After his lofty aspirations to write for The New Yorker are cut painlessly and semi-amusingly short by a freak encounter with lightning, Carson looks back on his so-called life with the gently rueful wisdom that is frequently granted young dead people in flashback tales like this one. The message? Seize the day, kids. There are some real stresses in the fellow's life, many caused by his mess of a drunken single mom (an affecting Allison Janney)." References External links 2012 films 2012 comedy-drama films 2012 independent films 2012 LGBT-related films 2010s coming-of-age comedy-drama films 2010s high school films 2010s teen comedy-drama films American coming-of-age comedy-drama films American high school films American independent films American teen comedy-drama films American teen LGBT-related films 2010s English-language films Films scored by Jake Monaco Films shot in Los Angeles Gay-related films LGBT-related comedy-drama films LGBT-related coming-of-age films 2010s American films