Movie Notes: Lymelife
= 4 stars
Starring Rory Culkin, Emma Roberts, Alec Baldwin
Directed by Derick Martini
Synopsis
Set in 70s, suburban Long Island, where teenager Scott Bartlett (Rory) realizes how flawed his family’s version of the American dream is turning out to be. He’s in love with flirtatious neighbor Adrianna (Emma Roberts) whose father has contracted Lyme disease, and Scott’s older military brother Jimmy (Rory Culkin) is unable ot keep their parents Mickey (Alec Baldwin) and Brenda (Jill Hennessy) from drifting apart.
The Good
- Behold often endearing Culkin chemistry, seen by the way they poke fun and physically abuse each other. Younger Rory, with sullen doe eyes, reminded me of Emilio Estevez.
- Scott’s muddled relationship with Adrianna hits close to home and hits that sweet spot of awkwardly funny. She’s agressive and drops hints all over the place which he’s too timid to catch.
- Alec Baldwin is great as an Irish developer who wants to rise above the “old nieghborhood” but is still at heart a slimeball. Explosive confrontations with his wife and son are highlights.
The Bad
- Plot ultimately wanders and causes the film to lose steam in the final third. Neighboring parents hold a lot of promise, in particular, husband Charlie (Timothy Hutton) who has contracted lyme disease and spends all day hiding the basement, seems like things are headed somewhere but fizzles out near film’s end.
- The ending is inconclusive and I wasn’t convinced the director intended it that way — unfortunately comes across like a lack of guts.
Conclusion
Solid acting and capable direction are failed by writing in the final stretch. But I’ll definitely keep my eye out for whatever director Martini and the Culkin brothers do in the future.
IMDB: Lymelife
Wikipedia: Lymelife
Rotten Tomatoes: Lymelife