For Ellen

For Ellen has all the superficial markings of the archetypal “critical favorite” indie flick. Paul Dano stars as Joby, a brooding, semi-articulate goth-metal singer-songwriter who is clearly at a crossroads in his life. Although we never meet Joby's band or hear their music, it's obvious from hints that while the band might have enjoyed marginal success in the past, they are now on the outs. What's worse, Joby is in the painful process of a divorce that will eventually mean losing custody of his 6-year-old daughter, Ellen (Shaylena Mandigo), despite the best efforts of his sadly ineffectual geek lawyer. After lots of drinking and brooding and general inward suffering, Joby finally tries to strike up a friendly relationship with his daughter, who eventually opens up to him and learns to tolerate his awkward approach to fathering. Even though Dano does a fair job of expressing Joby's inarticulate rage and frustration, all too often his character is more pathetic than sympathetic. Written and directed by So Yong Kim, For Ellen has its moments, but Joby remains a maddening cipher, a man whom we still know next to nothing about when the credits roll. Optional. (M. Sandlin)