Lymelife

Emma Roberts is going to make it big one day, I hope. Similarly, I wish destruction on the entire Culkin clan.

I guess Lymelife does what it sets out to do, but even with a lot of good performances, it is lacking some depth, something more, so that we do not just follow a few people's boring everyday lives far away from everything.

Low-key dysfunctional family drama in seventies Long Island. The cast is all good, particularly the Culkins. It's enjoyable enough, but we've seen it all before.

"After so many Ice Storms and American Beautys what further insights could the present offering hope to add?" - Andrew Schenker

Oh dear. Been awhile since I've seen a Tier 2-scraping bottomfeeder. The cast is a dead giveaway. I should have known, right there, full stop. Tim Hutton, I'm leaving you out of this. You were great in "Ordinary People". Look at the poster on the left. You see all those adjectives? "Tender..witty...hilarious?" Lies -- every one of them. Well,there were a few "startling performances" (the Culkin boys, still getting work!) but not the way the marketing guys intended. Flat, puzzling, forgettable.

Lymelife is a great film. If you like emotionally affecting indie dramas, ones with strong characters and a great sense of time and space, you'll enjoy this film. It has smart, sharply written characters, fantastic performances, gorgeous cinematography, and accurately captures the degradation of a couple of families. This is one of the good ones, and you should seek it out, even if it's not always an easy watch.

Solidny dramat obyczajowy

#11#, reviews, story.

While I'm not sure if I needed to see yet another American independent drama about broken families, Martini's film brings a mix of quirkiness and gravitas and true-ringingness which adds something new to the genre. Moving but not heart-rending, amusing but not laugh-out-loud, this film is content to settle for being mildly interesting and a little different. The acting is quite good and probably the main reason to watch. It's a low-key film but at least it feels true to itself and its aims.

Half respectable coming of age story. Well acted and relatable.

* Casting, Acting : 7 * Script : 7 * Directing, Aura : 7 * Ease of Viewing : 6 * Naked Eye : 6

Complicated without being boring, Lymelife is a fun movie that examines the pains and pleasures of growing up in the seventies. Alec Baldwin and Tim Hutton are at their best. The Culkin brothers are convincing and impressive as brothers. One of those movies that makes you feel like 'you were there.'

Solid, well written coming-of-age movie. There's certain confidence, optimistic view in the film, that can be felt by someone who lived through the hard times, and in the end could make a greater sense out of all experiences. Realistic, sometimes nostalgic family drama set in the American suburbs of the 70's.

A vastly compelling human drama. Some slight problems in editing, but the absolutely superb acting more than makes up for it.

Emma Roberts was the best thing in this movie. Culkin drags it down. Alec Baldwin & Jill Hennessy gave good performances. Others such as Timothy Hutton had very limited material to work with. Basically the plot & dialog were very weak. The director seemed to drag out random scenes. It was hard to connect with, or care about, these characters. Mostly just average people with average problems. Music was not good. Overall it was moderately entertaining but ultimately forgettable.

Good Movie

Seen: 2. I appreciate this movie more after the second viewing. It has quite a bit of heart and warmth for dealing with a tough subject matter. It's confrontational, mature, slyly funny at times, with great timing and strong performances. This is a truly underrated family drama.