Fifteen-year-old Scout Havers (India Ennenga) lives with her little sister Lulu (Onata Aprile) and her elderly grandmother (Ellen Burstyn). When Lulu almost overdoses on Gram's pills, social workers send her to live with Ray (Tim Guinee), the girls' biological father, a carnie whom they barely know, and his pregnant girlfriend Georgie (Nikki Reed), Scout runs away to find her. She joins forces with Sam Prescott (James Frecheville), a young man whom she breaks out of a mental institution where he's recovering from a suicide attempt. They are pursued by Red Freston (Danny Glover), a friend of Sam's deceased father who works for the family.
About Scout contains examples of:
- Affectionate Nickname: Sam's mother Gloria (Jane Seymour) calls him "Pigeon."
- And I'm the Queen of Sheba: A woman at the daycare center says that Lulu is too old and needs to be in public school. Scout says, "She is four," but the woman replies, "If Tallulah is four, I am the queen of Sheba, and I don't see no crowns sitting on top of my head."
- Bathroom Breakout: Scout escapes from the authorities through Gram's bathroom window.
- Bath Suicide: Sam attempts suicide by cutting his wrist in the bathtub.
- Bland-Name Product: Scout looks up Sam on search.com, whose logo uses the same colors as Google. Weirdly, Sam then uses the word "Google."
- Book Safe: Sam hides money and drugs in a copy of For Whom the Bell Tolls.
- Bridal Carry: Scout carries Lulu out of the hospital this way to get around the fact that they need an adult to sign them out.
- Bringing Running Shoes to a Car Chase: Scout futilely runs after Ray's truck as he drives off with Lulu.
- Couldn't Find a Pen: Before his suicide attempt, Sam writes "SORRY" on the mirror in shaving cream, then crosses it out and writes "FUCK YOU" instead.
- Dine and Dash: Scout obtains a milkshake for Lulu this way. She says that her "boyfriend" (Sam, who happens to be sitting next to her) will pay for it. The waitress yells that the glass isn't for takeout, but she runs away.
- Five-Finger Discount: At a rest stop, Scout tells Sam to ask for condoms to create a distraction while she steals food. They're interrupted by a news report on Scout and Sam's car theft.
- Glorified Sperm Donor: Scout tells Ray that the only fatherly thing he ever did was knocking up her mom.
- Gosh Darn It to Heck!: The characters are strangely fond of the word "effing."
- Kids Driving Cars: Scout does almost all the driving, even though Sam has a driver's license.
- Named After Somebody Famous: Sam assumes Scout is named after the protagonist of To Kill a Mockingbird, but in fact she and Lulu are named after Demi Moore's daughters.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Lulu's real name is Tallulah, but the only people who call her that are unsympathetic authority figures.
- Parlor Games: At one point Gloria plays Charades with some friends. One of them mimes rocking a baby and then stabbing it, and Gloria struggles to remember the word for infanticide.
- The Patient Has Left the Building: Sam's father was also suicidal. He was in a mental institution when he stole the director's car and drove it off a cliff.
- Say My Name: Lulu yells "Scout!" as Ray drives her away.
- Scatterbrained Senior: Gram is so old, she can't remember how many children she has.
- Tantrum Throwing: When Scout thinks that Sam has abandoned her and Lulu, she angrily smashes empty bottles on the wall near the bus stop.
