Lymelife

Dramas about dysfunctional suburban lives and period coming-of-age stories are hardly rare, but writer-director Derick Martini and his co-writer brother Steven Martini combine the two well in this 1970s-set tale of Scott (Rory Culkin), a 15-year-old growing up on 1970s Long Island who has eyes for his neighbor and longtime chum Adrianna (Emma Roberts). His mom Brenda (Jill Hennessy), who pines for their old home in Queens, is estranged from his dad Mickey (Alec Baldwin), who spends all his time working on a subdivision that he hopes will turn into a goldmine. Mickey is having an affair with Adrianna's mother Melissa (Cynthia Nixon), whose husband Charlie (Timothy Hutton) is suffering from Lyme disease—an obvious metaphor for the funk infecting everyone. Scott's older brother Jim (Rory's real-life sibling Kieran Culkin), a soldier home on leave awaiting possible deployment, is the story's other main character. The film depends less on plot than on a gradual evolution in the relationships among the characters, which are portrayed with considerable sensitivity: an intimate bedroom encounter between Scott and Adrianna, for instance, is convincingly clumsy, and the way the parents work through their mutual entanglements is affecting, despite some melodramatic moments. Lymelife doesn't do anything radically new, but it offers a strong ensemble, sharp writing, a real sense of place, and just enough twists on familiar territory to make it worth a visit. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by director Derick Martini and costar Rory Culkin, an alternate ending with optional commentary (20 min.), deleted scenes with optional commentary (8 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a solid film.] (F. Swietek)