"Rocket Science" vs. "Thumbsucker"

So I actually went to a movie tonight. Since the rest of my little family is still in Germany, I decided to see my first film in a theater for over half a year. It was kind of slim pickings at the theater down the street (and I was not up for driving anywhere), so I settled for "Rocket Science." The trailer was amusing, but I was kinda like, Oh, another coming-of-age-indie-flick. More importantly, the plot is basically identical to "Thumbsucker", which came out a couple years ago. Basically, a socially disfuntional teenage dude with an unfortunate trait/habit (stuttering for RS, and, umm, thumb sucking for Thumbsucker) joins the debate team in an effort to escape loserdom. Along the way, both protagonists encounter a girl who basically uses them and breaks their hearts. But they recover and are stronger for it. Both movies are also home to a cast of wacky secondary characters, including a guidance counselor/dentist who is trying to cure the protagonist of the aforementioned unfortunate trait/habit. So who wins this battle of remarkably similar films?
Tone: Though the plots are similar, Thumbsucker is substantially darker than RS. The former is a drama with comedy elements whereas the latter is more of a comedy with some serious elements. Both manage the balancing act relatively well, so your appreciation of one over the other might just depend on you mood. Winner: Depends on your endorphins on the day of viewage.
Plausability: Thumbsucker's characters and scenarios are essentially ramped up versions of those in RS. Or, since RS came later, it's a toned down version of Thumbsucker. Thumb-sucking is certainly a quirkier trait than stuttering. Both female love interests go toy with the protagonists' emotions (did I mention that both these movies are a bit misogynistic?), but Thumbsucker's vixen is daytime soap mean. And though the dentist in Thumbsucker (played surprisingly well by Keanu Reeves) is the funnier character, he's a little too wacky compared to the more cohesive guidance counselor character of RS. Winner: Rocket Science.
Acting: Thumbsucker had far more big names, besides Keanu: Tilda Swinton, Vincent D'onofrio, Vince Vaughn...and overall it shows. But even the relatively unknown lead in Thumbsucker, Lou Pucci, made a more convincing thumbsucker than Reece Thompson did a stutterer. Winner: Thumbsucker.
Soundtrack: This one's a toughie. Most of the Thumbsucker soundtrack was written and performed by The Polyphonic Spree, punctuated by some very nice covers by Elliot Smith (including a cover of Cat Stevens' "Trouble", which is excellent). I bought this soundtrack after seeing the movie almost two years ago and I still listen to it--I'm not a huge fan of the Spree, but this album worked for me. I don't own the soundtrack to Rocket Science since I just saw the movie tonight, but I'll probably get it. Most of the songs are written and/or sung by Eef Barzelay, the lead singer of Clem Snide and one of my favorite song writers of the last several years. There's also some Violent Femmes fun thrown in there for good measure. Winner: Tie.

(addendum: I got the Rocket Science soundtrack and it is indeed good. The music is anway...unfortunately there are also several tracks that are comprised of dialogue from the movie, a la the Clerks soundtrack. I don't care how clever a movie's dialogue is, I generally don't want to hear it on a CD. It's just not as funny taken out of context.)

OK, I gotta wrap this up. I apparently have too much time on my hands when my family is out of town. Anyway, I'd call Rocket Science the winner here. I can envision watching it again, whereas though I enjoyed Thumbsucker, I have no desire to watch it again. These would make an interesting double feature for anyone who hadn't seen either of them, so once Rocket Science comes out on DVD, I suggest everyone do just that, or you're lame.