Review of Lonesome Jim (2005) by Tibor B — 25 Mar 2009
Slightly predictable example of the brief wave of "loser returns home" US indie films, this one directed by Buscemi, on familiar ground as it has a similar tone to his debut film as director Trees Lounge.
Casey Affleck returns home to small-town US suffering from chronic despair after failing to sustain a living as a writer in New York. His despair infects his brother who attempts suicide, but fails, and of course then he meets lovely single mum Liv Tyler in a kinda downer meet-cute scenario and slowly begins to realise that, well, life is worth a try after all.
The script has nice moments, even if some of the lines are too self-consciously quirky to take seriously, but thankfully Buscemi and the cast do bring a lot of genuine compassion to the characters, and make a film about failure, depression and boredom not too depressing or boring!
This review of Lonesome Jim (2005) was written by Tibor B on 25 March 2009.
Lonesome Jim has generally received positive reviews.
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