It's here, studying these faces as the emotions well up, that we realize this is no mere roller derby movie by Barrymore; it's a story about women at a crossroads in their lives, all searching for the meaning of it all. And in these extended reaction shots, she wants us to really think about where these characters have been and what they're dealing with.

The ads have promised us a roller derby crash-a-thon and "Whip It" surely delivers the goods on that basic level, putting us in the middle of the oval as two teams of speed-skating maniacs check, closeline and trample one another. But the action in the rink, we quickly realize, is only half the real story.

Talk to anyone who's involved in roller derby - as I have - and they'll tell you something deeper is going on other than mindless speed and violence. There's a sense of community and camaraderie at play here, as well as a fair bit of female empowerment.

This is a league where the women are the stars and the celebrities of weekly or semi-weekly matches. It is a universe that is the antithesis to what Bliss (Ellen Page) is being put through by her mother, who insists that she take part in beauty pageants.

The 17-year-old Bliss desperately wants to get out of her rural Texas town. This is a place where she's an outcast - the girl who's made fun of at high school, who's mocked by her customers at the local diner (where she never gets a tip).

She and her friend, Pash (Alia Shawkat), go to their first roller derby competition and Bliss is utterly enamored. She's not a very physical competitor, but when she eventually tries out for the team it turns out she can skate pretty darn fast. She's brought on to the roster and starts sneaking out on the bingo bus every afternoon, heading to daily practice in Austin.

But this is no mere sports vehicle. It's a coming of age film, with the skating serving as a conduit through which Bliss can experience a whole new world. Thanks to this team, she finds mother figures she can actually identify with, an activity her sports-loving father can get behind, and a way to meet the sorts of boys who dig who she truly is. It's also where she learns how to take a hit, to pick herself up off the ground and to know what it's like to have a warehouse full of fans cheering you on.

So this is why Barrymore's direction, who also stars in the film as the most physically ambitious and bloody member of the team, is that much more notable.

When Bliss is feeling intimidated by her skating competition, when she's falling for the lead singer on the music stage, when she's fed up with her mother or conflicted over what decisions she should make in a bid to be a good daughter and friend, we start to fall in love with this character.

In another movie, these would be standard plot developments, but here Barrymore holds the shot, and we find ourselves doing a double and triple take, looking deeper into these characters' eyes. Here's a movie that wants the best for its young heroine and plays fair with her emotions.

I loved every minute of it.

E-mail: SnyderReviews@hotmail.com