BEAUTIFUL BOY (2018)

 Starring- Steve Carell, Timothee Chalamet, Maura Tierney, and Amy Ryan.

Directed By- Felix Van Groeningen

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David Sheff- "Do you know how much I love you? More than everything".

Nic Sheff- Everything?

David Sheff- Everything.

The beauty of this film is that the story is told from both father and son perspectives. The silence within this film is so powerful, that if you're eating popcorn, sipping on a beverage, or your phone rings, you do any of these at your own risk. "Beautiful Boy" is a powerful movie-going experience and one that is hard to get out of your head.

Above all, it is the acting performances that make this film, and the four key cast members all turn in memorable turns. It's excruciating watching Carell's parental anguish and then (like a blast of light) his realization of a truth he'd been avoiding for a long time. It's Chalamet though who truly shines, delivering fully on the realization of the tortured and self-torturing Nic.

Timothee Chalamet gives an outstanding performance and Steve Carell is right up there with him. Their emotions come through strongly and carry the story. Though unfortunately, the story-line feels predictable. The flashbacks were more distracting than endearing. And those aspects hold the film back.

It's about the true story of a writer and father who begins losing his straight-A son with a bright future to drugs. Pot is only the beginning, and Crystal Meth is nearly the end. The film does a great job dealing with the psychology of drug addiction and how it affects those addicted AND their loved ones. Some of the editings were weird and confused me a bit, especially the flashbacks. But it didn't impede the impact of the film. Like I said, even without this cast of actors it would've been an admirable film nonetheless, but because of their performances it took a decent film and made it a very good one.

 It's the kind of movie I do recommend people see, as long as they're prepared to go in. In many ways, it has many parallels to The Exorcist. Both movies are about parents who are helpless as they watch their teenage children enter a downward, deathly spiral.

The other players are all good, too, and compound the flick's events as occurring in the 'real world'. The performances and this grounded vibe keep things more than watchable, even if the overall result is slightly underwhelming. This isn't a bad effort, just a somewhat hollow one. 

My Rating- 6.5/10