This is a nice twisty drama about an arty family and the personal relationships of the key people.
There's a father and mother, an estranged father and a mistress. How all of it comes together and resolves itself is the story. Quite is satisfying watch.
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anil-kulkarni-108-856632 July 2020
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ferguson-67 August 2017Greetings again from the darkness. When a movie borrows its title from a great Simon and Garfunkel song, and then utilizes the song to emphasize a point during the story, we can't help but have high expectations. This is often true even if it appears we are likely to be subjected to yet another movie featuring the all too familiar ground of New York intellectuals brewing and stewing their own problems. Director Marc Webb (500 DAYS OF SUMMER, GIFTED) delivers the type of film that critics tend to rip, and audiences like to watch.
Much of the story seems familiar, but the excellent cast prevents the clichés from being overly distracting. Callum Turner stars as Thomas, an aimless writer-wannabe and recent college graduate with daddy issues. Thomas spends his time dreaming about what he might be and pining for the beautiful, intelligent girl with whom he hangs out. It's understandable why Mimi (Kiersey Clemons) has friend-zoned him, since she has ambitions and goals, while he mostly just talks and drifts through each day. One evening while enjoying their conversation over drinks, Thomas spots his dad getting beyond "friendly" with a beautiful young woman in a corner booth. This is upsetting because Thomas' parents are still married, and his mother is at home working through clinical depression.
Ethan (Pierce Brosnan) is a well-known publisher and Judith (Cynthia Nixon) is an artist in a fragile state. As with most self-centered twenty-somethings, Thomas has just assumed the marriage was fine and their family fell into the "normal" range of dysfunction. It's about this time when the movie assumes the tone of a Woody Allen movie. Thomas turns detective and begins following the mysterious beauty from the booth, and their first encounter is a bit awkward. He finds himself mesmerized by Johanna (Kate Beckinsale). She's the stuff that dreams (and fantasies) are made of for both fathers and sons.
Johanna is really the second spell that Thomas has fallen under. His neighbor W.F. has been providing sage advice on love and writing. It's yet another terrific performance from Jeff Bridges, who plays the alcoholic mentor with secrets of his own. See, every character here carries the weight and burden of their own secrets and plays games in every relationship. In fact, much of the movie plays like group therapy – two characters at a time.
No superheroes exist in this world. There are no car chases or guns, and the only knife is used to slice strawberries in the kitchen. The movie could be described as a coming-of-age story; however, it's not just Thomas that has growing up to do. A deeper message is on display for those who take notice. Every person and every family has secrets, and many people find an inability to be honest and open to be a much simpler way to go through life. We know that people aren't always good – even when we really want them to be.
Of course, we do get the obligatory dinner party with a table full of New York intellectuals (including Wallace Shawn) reminiscing about what a great city it used to be. Actually, nostalgia is an underlying theme throughout. The dinner party does provide Thomas the opportunity to drop the best 'Philadelphia' line since W.C. Fields. The script provides some other quality lines, and though it's certainly not at the level of Whit Stillman or Noah Baumbach, it marks a step up for writer Allan Loeb, who is renowned for such lackluster efforts as COLLATERAL BEAUTY, THE SPACE BETWEEN US and JUST GO WITH IT. He likely owes director Webb and cast a debt of gratitude. -
The story is set in New York where everyone is trying to become someone, though only a few make it. Our protagonist, 20 something Thomas (Callum Turner) is struggling to become a writer despite his father's disapproval and pressure to find a more stable job. He struggles between what he wants and what his father (Pierce Brosnan) says is possible. His mother (Cynthia Nixon) suffers from depression, is a frequent smoker and seems unstable, he feels the need to take care of her which prevents him from moving away and maybe accomplishing his goals. His crush, Mimi (Kiersey Clemons) does not like him back and sees him as a friend. He feels like his life is boring and like he does not have an interesting story to tell the world.
Then he meets a mysterious old man (Jeff Bridges) who appears to have everything figured out. They become friends and share life experiences. His life completely changes when he finds out his father has a mistress named Johanna (Kate Beckinsale) and decides to persuade her to break up with his father for the sake of his troubled mother. He falls in love with her, forgetting Mimi and complicating things. He finally lets his father know about him and Johanna. After a while, we find out Jeff Bridges is actually his father and when he was talking about having fallen in love once he really was talking about Thomas's mother..
This film is slow so it will not be anyone's cup of tea but it is well thought-out, well acted and has a deeper message to convey: it's never too late to find your place. It is never too late to follow your heart. Thomas's parents sought stability and certainty so they stayed together although they knew they wanted other people or had to give up on their dreams. But after many years of marriage, they finally understood they were unhappy, so Thomas's father found a lover and his mother smoked while regretting how she handled the past. But meeting Johanna helped Thomas find out about his biological dad who encouraged his talent but also improve his relationship with his other dad (who was always trying to keep him down to earth and not let him go after his dream job).
His father stays with Johanna, his mother finally gets the chance to be with her true love (his biological father) and Thomas decides to give writing a chance although he knows failure comes before success. So this film is not so much about cheating as about finding your identity, learning to cope when you think there's no hope or turning back and chasing after the people you love or your dreams. -
myopnionis25 September 2018GREAT movie. Admittedly it starts just a little slow but is still very interesting to watch. It then picks up and only gets more and more interesting. It's very poetic and even days after you've watched, it stays with you. It is not for the closed minded or for people who only like fast moving action or typical romance movies. It has different outcomes than you'd expect and every bit along the way is very genuine and very well acted by everyone in it! It is very real life and warm while also heart-breaking and lovely. It is full of depth in each and every single character! I watch this over a weel ago and it just keeps popping into my thoughts. Highly recommend it!
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pouriyaerfani2 September 2018Excellent story , great acting , The movie has a nice potential and you will surely watching this
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jstrelou20 January 2024The way back stories are chronicled and the candid glimpse into the private lives of New Yorkers saw me checking whether this was directed by Woody Allen, it was not, however I have no doubt the director was inspired by him. The film delves into the many intricacies of relationships, the beauty that can be found, but also the sadness of always.wanting.more.
I found myself smiling at the some of the perversities explored and crying at the beautiful poetic sadness of love. At the heart of this is the whimsical nature of human beings, our search for more, and a reminder that everything is temporary. -
hugh-33-5800921 November 2020Engaging cast with some things not as they seem giving it some momentum that it might not deserve, but nonetheless it drew me in. Exceptional cinematography. Every shot is beautifully composed and lit. The city is a character in the film.
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hexjinx25 January 2021If you want to waste your time listening to the "wise" ramblings of a seemingly toothless old man (Jeff Bridges) to a testosterone-less young man, have at it. And it used to be coming-of-age stories happened to 16-year olds. Now we've stretched it out to 20 somethings? Unlikeable and/or unattractive characters spewing trite dialogue and behaving weirdly passes for edgy entertainment. Some nice camera work and interesting interiors got me to give it ageneroys 4.
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Thomas Webb (Turner) is a spoiled rich millennial who is trying to figure out what to do with his life after college. While searching for life answers around mysterious neighbor (Bridges), he learns that his father (Brosnan) is cheating on his mother (Nixon) with his assistant (Beckinsale). "The Only Living Boy in New York" is a movie full of characters you would walk away from at a cocktail party, engaging in the flattest brand of smart banter imaginable. Turner is a very irritating person as Thomas, while film's main draw should be Bridges. He's a phenomenal actor, but his roles get too cliche, wasted and reduced to portraying a stereotypical cigar-toting old man who has a thing or two to tell the young ones. Brosnan is a surprising standout, his burst of anger and subsequent sadness during one pivotal scene conveying more years of back story in mere minutes. "The Only Living Boy in New York" have fantastic cast, looks good, but it's not particularly distinctive because it was playing safe in the end when It could be a little more daring and dangerous. In general, it is definitely an odd story with a twist, but I did enjoyed (most of) it. 7+/8- out of 10.
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secondtake24 November 2017The Only Living Boy in New York (2017)
A surprise, from a film I hadn't heard about. It's flawed, it has some gaffes in the writing, and it uses some overused ideas (including the whole world of writers writing about being writers). But the acting is good, and the sentiment is kept in check (most of the time) so that it works overall. Enjoyable if nothing remarkable.
There is a surprising number of known actors here, from Pierce Brosnan to Wallace Shawn (briefly). Callum Turner, the leading man (the only living boy), is likable but a weak link overall. He is meant to be in a crisis on every level, and he kind of shows it but you feel something missing in the performance. And maybe the writing.
Ah, the writing. This is a movie about writers. And there are so many clichés here you can fill a salt shaker with them. Yeah, we love interpersonal drama, and the troubled mom and the troubled dad and the unlikely wise old man next door not to mention the utterly improbably girlfriend who isn't a girlfriend but who hangs on steadily anyway. It's a mashup of heart tugging types, and our star is in the middle navigating it all with really no rudder
Or you might say that Jeff Bridges is his rudder. He's a cliché, too, of course, but his wisdom is good enough to give the movie some depth. I'd say the smarts of Kate Beckinsale's character, the mistress/lover with a troubled past and a surprisingly steady head on her shoulders, rises above the rest. Her performance is spot on, too.
The upshot here is that the movie has a lot of little things to like, and the plot, which is riddled with little annoying emotional tricks, still has some honesty to it and you'll likely enjoy it all for what it is. -
kidkameleon16 September 2017My girlfriend dragged me to the cinema to see this flick, and when she fell asleep after 15 minutes, and despite not being a drinker, I wish I had smuggled in more than one beer. Like most films and series it is set in a fantasy world most of us don't have access to. A boy who's biggest problem seems to be getting away from his loaded dad and depressed 'don't know what to do with my free time' mother, and which woman to pursue. The stunningly beautiful one, or the stunningly beautiful one. Granted, I'm simplifying, and the story does build, but I just cannot fake any interest in these type of ivory tower characters anymore.
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mblumenfield-024271 August 2017This movie has some shades of a Woody Allen film in its character studies of people and in capturing the atmosphere of Manhattan. It examines family and sexual relationships between a husband and wife as well as extramarital love and sex. It looks at a young man's struggle with his sexual and romantic feelings. This is a psychological drama that highlights guilt, jealousy and even an important aspect of the oedipal complex. It is complicated and heavy stuff and it all flows from the pen of screenwriter Allen Loeb, who had written several successful movies before this earlier script ultimately came to fruition. This didn't happen until Marc Webb became attached to it as director and a terrific ensemble cast was put together which includes Jeff Bridges, Pierce Brosnan, Cynthia Nixon, Kiersey Clemons and Kate Beckinsale. However, the character who ties the plot together is relative newcomer, Callum Turner, who plays Thomas, the 25-year-old son who ultimately makes deep seated discoveries about himself and each of his parents before he can move on with his life.
This is the type of movie that will capture your attention and make you ponder each character's motivation. The story has depth, poignancy and surprises which will grab hold you and won't let go throughout the film. It certainly kept us thinking and talking as we left the theater. (2017) – Scheduled for release August 11th. FilmRap.net -
Blumanowar6 May 2021I really enjoyed it Despite the critics hazing, especially Travers. He's usually spot on but seems to just hate this movie... probably reminded him of his life of privilege or his resentment of such lol. It is a very good flick, the actors are great and the characters very interesting. I almost didn't watch it but am very glad I did. Definitely worth the watch.
PS the site says severe sex but there is no sex at all. It shows people in bed under the covers but they're not having sex just talking. There's kissing but that's hardly 'severe'.. give me a break. -
suxbeinsingle28 November 2020The movie was actually quite good enough to finish watching even in spite of Cullum Turner, a complete miscast. Twists and turns were great but the writing at times fell short as if the writing couldn't keep up with the ideas & direction in which the film was headed. Bridges almost singlehandedly but with an assist from Beckinsale held the film together whilst Brosnan didn't contribute nearly as much as I had hoped for other than a few funny faces attempting paternal anger/anguish towards his ward. Nixon phoned this one in, nothing much to say about her performance other than bland/unmemorable, but no one was expecting much from that character I'm sure. The Cinematography was quite good, one could tell that Bridges was most certainly on an actual LES rooftop. Kudos to the locations team. I would have like to see Lower East Side landmarks and institutions.. where were they? No homage to anything LES really.... or I had missed them yawning through Cullum's performance. Turner was completely and totally diss-believable as a native new Yorker- of any kind or from even anywhere in the state let alone a cool LES resident or New Yorker of privledge- which is in all actuality one of the more easy enough characters to portray because very little effort or research is required to play such a role. Turner brought forth no accent even the slightest nor any vibe that would breathe LES/downtown coolness or appeal. Thomas Webb may have of well been from Alberta... What was most disappointing was that Turner was totally dismissible as a resident of the modern day Lower East Side, which is what I was most excited about going into this picture, the last real neighborhood in Manhattan with the last of the true artists and talented resident in town. He showed no portrayal nor character of NYC- let alone a Manhattanite at all. Did he even go down to the Lower East Side to hang out? Meet some artists or writers or any of the scores of talented people of any kind that live there? Sit in a bar and listen to or chat up some long time residents or bartenders? Certainly no. Beckinsale was wonderful and played that NYC female character we all know so well almost perfectly, for a Brit anyway.. but even suspension of disbelief couldn't help with bringing any life to her character's "relationship" with Thomas Webb. We can't say enough great things about the legendary Jeff Bridges, would love to see him in more roles/films like this. He portrays the essence of flawless coolness in Brobdingnagian proportions with such ease like no other.
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navdp24 September 2018A drama which opens up and keeps you interested till the end. Some mix of humour would have made it a wonderful watch. More of Pierson and Bridges would have helped.
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"Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me." Benjamin (Dustin Hoffman) in the adultery classic, The Graduate.
Adultery is a prickly business, so to speak. Consider the heft of Anna Karenina, the intensity of Fatal Attraction, and the lightness of A Summer Place. Closer to the last film is director Marc Webb's The Only Living Boy in New York, a tepid potboiler about a boy, Thomas (Collum Turner), bedding his dad, Ethan's (Pierce Brosnan), mistress, Johanna (Kate Beckinsale).
Although it sounds deliciously seamy, the film is really a slow burn of anxiety as the truth waits to step forward with as little character exposition as allowed these days and an ending Nicholas Sparks could have written on deadline. The initial conjunction of son and mistress has some credulity due to the neglectful way dad treats son, a revenge waiting to happen. However, the episodic nature of the trysts and cluelessness of dad and wronged mom are disappointing.
Nothing can beat the ending, a Hollywood contrivance I railed against with The Glass Castle the other day. I suspect it pleases a trial audience but not a discerning one that wants organic exposition, not just clichéd stuff you can see all the way down Fifth Avenue.
Yes, they are rich, and the boy is spoiled but congenial. In some respects The Graduate could have been an inspiration, with its compromise of a young man by a cougar in a leopard bra. Barely a bra here and not the intriguing, ironic bed talk supplied by Charles Webb and smoothly offered by Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft.
Marc Webb director? Thomas Webb character in this film? Charles Webb author of The Graduate? Wish there were more magic in the web of that. Coincidental but no help with the turgid romances of The Only Living Boy in New York. -
alon-dar12 November 2017it's an OK movie, old story, tiny twist in it, but same all same all. terrible acting by Kiersey Clemons, just terrible. OK acting from the others, and, i can't believe that i am writing this, very good acting by Pierce Brosnan. No way? way. Jeff Bridges is the same, no one can expect from him to act as a human. there is a feeling that the producers/director tried to create a strong and dramatic almost noir movie, they did not succeed, what you do get is a decent not too boring 90 minutes. the score is very suitable.
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It's tough but true: the 1960s and The Graduate (1967) will never happen again. Although the title of The Only Living Boy in New York (2017) is a nod to the iconic romantic comedy that was immortalised in music by Simon and Garfunkel, this new film is more of a twisty Woody Allen-style coming-of-age story about growing up in contemporary America. Same theme, different tune.
The film's key narrative device rests on a young man meeting a stranger who is writing a book based on the young man's life as it unfolds in real time. Twenty-something and nerdish, Thomas (Callum Turner) wants to be a writer and knows that he must experience the pain of living before he can write seriously. He has decided that beautiful Mimi (Kiersey Ciemons) is his one true love based on one night in bed but for her it was a bit of fun with a close friend. Thomas finds a stranger called W.F. (Jeff Bridges) sitting on his stairs who offers wise counsel despite efforts to avoid him. Soon W.F. is his muse and mentor and Thomas shares everything of his life and dreams. When Thomas discovers that his father Ethan (Pierce Brosnan) is having an affair, his worldview is shattered. He stalks the lover Johanna (Kate Beckinsale), confronts her, and ends up in her bed. It transpires that every relationship in Thomas' life is not what he thought it was. Welcome to adulthood.
Calling the film Woody Allen-esque is shorthand for a storytelling style that depends on angst- laden whimsy. Thomas is a likable boy whose emotional fragility is a result of family wealth, middle-class breeding, and graduate education, so it's faintly pleasurable to witness his shocked awakening to how relationships work in the real world. What happens is nowhere near as significant to the film as how the characters react to unexpected change and the role of the mysterious W.F. Young Tom's loss of innocence is followed by a primitive masculine urge, just as his father's reaction to his infidelity being discovered is to exert brute force over others. While emotional worlds are cracking, W.F. listens and counsels, like an ancient omniscient narrator who also seems to shape the storyline as we watch. When his book is finished, so is the story except for a final twist that reveals who he is.
Stylishly filmed and well-acted by a stellar ensemble, the film is also an exposé of privileged life in New York, with enough insider jokes and cultural references to make most audiences feel like they are outside looking in. No doubt the glasshouse effect is intended, as it is possible to stay interested but disconnected from its characters and their feelings. If you prefer action-based movies, there is not a lot happening here. But if you enjoy a nostalgic revisit to early adulthood accompanied by evocative music in an urban bohemian setting, there is enough to keep you engaged in the movie until its satisfyingly unexpected finale. -
rockman1825 September 2017Named after the song of the same title by Paul Simon, here is a film that is under the radar and limited in release. With my MoviePass I've been making attempts to see things I normally don't see. I saw that Kate Beckinsale was in it and that of course peaked my interest (as it should for any one really). After watching it I can't say I found it to be great. There are moments but they just fade away into a very average film that struggles to leave an impression.
The film is a bout a young boy in New York who finds out that his father is actually carrying out an affair with a mistress. Once he pursues the mistress he realizes that he himself is attracted to her and they carry out a relationship. Things come to a head, as their relationship starts to effect the lives of the people around him and he must decide what to do. There's much more to it going on but its actually irrelevant because none of it really adds much to the excitement the film should bring.
I can understand why you would need a younger actor like Callum Turner for this role but his awkward gawkiness doesn't really help to cater the relationship between Turner and Beckinsale's character. Jeff Bridges was quite good, as he usually is. The stuff with his character did feel shoehorned in to try to develop a eureka moment and it wasn't really a surprise. The film gets lost in itself trying to sound very profound when in fact there is really little going on here.
Marc Webb and Allan Loab still have a ways to go to really impressive me as creative filmmakers and writers. Its a film where you really struggle to think about anything that made it special. Even for a film with an older mistress who is in multiple affairs, the film had near zero eroticism. Basically, the film fails to establish itself on any fronts and thus is forgettable. No harm done, I didn't have many expectations anyways.
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I wish there would be more of those movies. Right from the get go you feel a certain tone a certain mood that is different from your patterned "Hollywood" flick. This movie does what good movies do it focuses on story and characters and both are tremendous. I have never seen Callum Turner in anything but he does a pretty good job as our main character torn between doing the right thing and doing what he feels. Kate Beckinsale with her very monotone and lifeless line deliveries is still cast well because she is mainly there to be the attractive and seductive one and she is very good at that. Brosnan who I like to see but never surpasses a certain level has one of his best performances of his career. But they are all outshined by Jeff Bridges which is no knock on them. Bridges in one of those actors that like a good wine get's better and better which each year he ages. The story is the second big star. Starting of very slow but building up until all the dots are connected and all the themes that were established come full circle. So if you are looking for a movie that is outside of the box that feels like something that you have not seen a hundred times give that one a try.
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neilmaine8 February 2021I just plain don't usually go for this kind of hip, sort of artsy drama. This surprised me with its ability to hold attention and a twist I just did not foresee. Enough said.
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The main character looks like an effeminate little dweeb who has no business trying to sleep with Kate Beckinsale , and I think he's a very annoying Whitney complaining character.
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I have often said that we spend our twenties trying to figure it all out, and then when we hit our thirties we realize that all we have to do is just live our lives. However, getting through that third decade of living to get there tends to be simply a roller-coaster of emotion. Between trying to break the mold of being seen as a child and trying to have the respect of a living, working, independent adult that may not be completely there yet is such fertile ground for storytelling that Hollywood sits in that pocket of life quite a bit. Marc Webb, famous music video director and the man who brought us "(500) Days of Summer" and both "The Amazing Spider-Man" films (both of which I enjoyed, so judge me if you will) takes his crack at a slice of this life with his latest film, "The Only Living Boy in New York".
With a title taken from a Simon & Garfunkel song, Callum Turner is the central character here playing Thomas, a twenty-two-year-old living on his own on the Lower East Side as he is working toward being a writer. He also is dealing with a woman that he is mad for in Mimi (Kiersey Clemons), who may or may not feel the same way, a publisher father (Pierce Brosnan) who just wants him to have direction, and a mother (Cynthia Nixon) who is teetering on the edge of a breakdown. When he stumbles on the fact that his father is having an affair with one his co-workers, Johanna (Kate Beckinsale), it throws everything he knows into a tailspin with the only real anchor in his life being a mysterious old man who moves in across the hall from him (Jeff Bridges).
Looking at screenwriter Allan Loeb's body of work, this film could be kind of everything he has worked on put in the proverbial blender, and what comes out of it is nothing short of satisfying. This is a very rich story told on multiple levels while keeping the main story moving in a way that all of the parts make the whole even better. Callum truly embraces the millennial part of him here, with that sense of entitlement as well as young adult angst that us old codgers would shake our fists at, but at the same time realizing that some of these traits may be a bit more universal than we choose to admit thus making the audience look at this time in their lives through a bit of different lenses. Beckinsale is as irresistible as ever in the role of the "other woman" who wants everyone to believe that she is simply footloose and fancy free but in her quiet moments is so much more, and there is also a great performance by Clemons, whose Mimi is a character that too many of us can identify having an association with in our lifetimes. Brosnan and Nixon, while having limited screen time, also do a serviceable job here to keep Thomas' path moving.
And then, there's Jeff Bridges. Seriously, The Dude is THE DUDE here with all of his wisdom and just crushes it. I feel like everyone should have someone in their lives like his character of W.F. Gerald, and if that person just happens to be Jeff Bridges, that is just all the more awesome. This man is a master at owning his scenes while at the same time knowing that give-and-take that makes his costars shine in a way that is natural and absolutely a wonder to watch.
Visually, I was very impressed with the style employed by Webb, which reminded me a lot of a '60s French film with a modern American sensibility. There is a tinge of Hitchcock-ian suspense involved as Thomas seeks to know more about the woman that has distracted his father's affections that really upped the cool vibe for me as I was watching the film. The tone here is right on point for the story, and the attention to detail shown by the crew translates beautifully.
"The Only Living Boy in New York" is a film that although has an indie vibe is fully and totally aimed for a mass audience. There is something here for all parts of the movie going spectrum from the casual film goer to the more seasoned and detailed film fan. "Well told, well-acted, and beautifully shot" should be enough to get you there, so go! -
Sergiodave26 July 2021A movie which starts with hope and still manages to grow. The main character is Thomas Webb , a modern day yet 10 year older Holden Caulfield played very well by Callum Turner. He finds out his father is having an affair and becomes fixated on the mistress. All the cast are great and helped by a great screenplay Glad I found this little gem.
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randbark-211 September 2018Just another movie about rich, self indulgent, neurotic narcissists. No depth to the characters whatsoever.