Beautiful Boy * * *
This film is a bit like complicated sauce. All the fine ingredients are included but the darn thing keeps coming apart. It wont blend to become a satisfying whole.
Perhaps it would have worked better if it used a stricter chronological sequence of events rather than shifting us backward and forward.
It's a portrait of the sickness of addiction, which also makes it a sad film. But I have to say, it's accurate in its constant disappointments - addiction followed by rehab followed by relapse again and again. The trouble is, we are watching a film, and we have certain expectations of moving forward: So much of the disappointment we feel when watching Beautiful Boy doesn't come from empathy with the protagonists, rather than with the overall film. It just keeps marking time. Yet, that might be the point- to make us feel how supporters of the addict feels. If that's it's intention, I guess it works.
There is no identifiable reason why Nic became an addict. His home life is good, his social life is good, he's a good student. The only explanation is the one he gives his father: He tried drugs and he liked it. He was also not afraid to experiment. His addiction isn't just confined to crystal meth, he takes a lot more than that!
Nic's life falls apart time and time again. With such dire consequences you might call it preachy, but I think it's fair and accurate. It also accurately conveys the painful truth that an addicts friends and relatives must face: Ultimately, the cure lies with the addict. In a support group for people with drug dependent loved ones, Nic's father learns of the three C's: He didn't cause it, he can't control it and he can't cure it.
There are superb performance from all the actors, especially Timothee Chalamet as Nic and Steve Carrel as his loving father who is unswerving in his commitment to help his son. Yet unfortunately, for some reason there is something about the overall drama that left me dissatisfied.
Perhaps it would have worked better if it used a stricter chronological sequence of events rather than shifting us backward and forward.
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| Three stars Dad?Yeah, but at least Flip likes you and me Nic. |
There is no identifiable reason why Nic became an addict. His home life is good, his social life is good, he's a good student. The only explanation is the one he gives his father: He tried drugs and he liked it. He was also not afraid to experiment. His addiction isn't just confined to crystal meth, he takes a lot more than that!
Nic's life falls apart time and time again. With such dire consequences you might call it preachy, but I think it's fair and accurate. It also accurately conveys the painful truth that an addicts friends and relatives must face: Ultimately, the cure lies with the addict. In a support group for people with drug dependent loved ones, Nic's father learns of the three C's: He didn't cause it, he can't control it and he can't cure it.
There are superb performance from all the actors, especially Timothee Chalamet as Nic and Steve Carrel as his loving father who is unswerving in his commitment to help his son. Yet unfortunately, for some reason there is something about the overall drama that left me dissatisfied.
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