Lyle Jensen is subject to sudden and violent outbursts, and he is committed to the juvenile wing of the Northwood Mental Institution. Several other youths are there with a variety of ... See full summary »
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A young boy has lost his mother and is losing touch with his father and the world around him. Then he meets Hesher who manages to make his life even more chaotic.
Director:
Spencer Susser
Stars:
Joseph Gordon-Levitt,
Devin Brochu,
Rainn Wilson
A man who lost his family in the September 11 attack on New York City runs into his old college roommate. Rekindling the friendship is the one thing that appears able to help the man recover from his grief.
Director:
Mike Binder
Stars:
Adam Sandler,
Don Cheadle,
Jada Pinkett Smith
Disgruntled Korean War vet Walt Kowalski sets out to reform his neighbor, a young Hmong teenager, who tried to steal Kowalski's prized possession: his 1972 Gran Torino.
Director:
Clint Eastwood
Stars:
Clint Eastwood,
Christopher Carley,
Bee Vang
A thirteen-year-old girl's relationship with her mother is put to the test as she discovers drugs, sex, and petty crime in the company of her cool but troubled best friend.
A young Jewish man develops a fiercely anti-Semitic worldview. Based on the true story of a KKK member in the 1960s who was revealed to be Jewish by a New York Times reporter.
Director:
Henry Bean
Stars:
Ryan Gosling,
Peter Meadows,
Garret Dillahunt
Lyle Jensen is subject to sudden and violent outbursts, and he is committed to the juvenile wing of the Northwood Mental Institution. Several other youths are there with a variety of serious problems. Lyle interacts with other patients and staff on a human, and sometimes not so human level. The psychological problems of the patients also forms the fabric by which we see what's right with them, and what's wrong with the society that affects them. Written by
Scott from Milwaukee, WI, USA
Following a fight which left his classmate with 50 stitches to the head, Lyle (Levitt) finds himself admitted to a juvenile ward of a private psychiatric facility.
The new admission's fellow patients are being treated for a variety of conditions: Chad (played by co-screenwriter Michael Bacall) suffers from an acute manic-depressive disorder; the self-mutilating Tracy (Deschanel) wakes up screaming in the night; tough-guy Mike (Henson) asserts himself through violence; and the shy, diminutive Kenny (Lightning) has been sexually abused by a family member.
The clinic's psychologist Dr Monroe (Cheadle) attempts to get these troubled individuals to explore their feelings and to take responsibility for their actions in group therapy sessions.
Is it ever going to be possible for them to find real meaning in their chaotic existences?
Shot with a powerful immediacy on handheld digital video, the debut feature of director Jordan Melamed is a US indie which borrows from the spirit of the best Dogme films.
There's little in the way of a conventional story here - just a powerful concentration on character and atmosphere.
Set almost entirely within the confines of a psychiatric ward (where shoelaces are removed in case of attempted suicides), the film steers clear of the phony redemption offered by the likes of "Girl, Interrupted" and "Good Will Hunting".
Partly through some astute editing, Melamed conveys the strange rhythms of institutional life for these adolescents: the sense of boredom and frustration is mixed with frenetic bursts of energy, whether on the basketball court or in a slamdance trashing of the recreational room.
The dialogue is often biting - "Do you think being black is talking **** and wearing baggy clothes?" Monroe asks white B-Boy Mike.
The performances are also impressively convincing, while the ambiguous ending is in keeping with the rest of this edgy, sincere drama.
22 of 23 people found this review helpful.
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Following a fight which left his classmate with 50 stitches to the head, Lyle (Levitt) finds himself admitted to a juvenile ward of a private psychiatric facility.
The new admission's fellow patients are being treated for a variety of conditions: Chad (played by co-screenwriter Michael Bacall) suffers from an acute manic-depressive disorder; the self-mutilating Tracy (Deschanel) wakes up screaming in the night; tough-guy Mike (Henson) asserts himself through violence; and the shy, diminutive Kenny (Lightning) has been sexually abused by a family member.
The clinic's psychologist Dr Monroe (Cheadle) attempts to get these troubled individuals to explore their feelings and to take responsibility for their actions in group therapy sessions.
Is it ever going to be possible for them to find real meaning in their chaotic existences?
Shot with a powerful immediacy on handheld digital video, the debut feature of director Jordan Melamed is a US indie which borrows from the spirit of the best Dogme films.
There's little in the way of a conventional story here - just a powerful concentration on character and atmosphere.
Set almost entirely within the confines of a psychiatric ward (where shoelaces are removed in case of attempted suicides), the film steers clear of the phony redemption offered by the likes of "Girl, Interrupted" and "Good Will Hunting".
Partly through some astute editing, Melamed conveys the strange rhythms of institutional life for these adolescents: the sense of boredom and frustration is mixed with frenetic bursts of energy, whether on the basketball court or in a slamdance trashing of the recreational room.
The dialogue is often biting - "Do you think being black is talking **** and wearing baggy clothes?" Monroe asks white B-Boy Mike.
The performances are also impressively convincing, while the ambiguous ending is in keeping with the rest of this edgy, sincere drama.