There’s nothing remotely original about Derick Martini’s saga of American suburban life in the late Seventies. It has all been done before — but Martini’s first feature is so sharply written and well acted that it appears fresh as a daisy.
Its pawky hero is Scott (Rory Culkin), a sad-sack youth who desires the pretty girl next door (Emma Roberts) but can’t summon up the courage to tell her so. His philandering father (Alec Baldwin) has no such qualms. He is having an affair with the girl’s mother (Cynthia Nixon) and her sick father (Timothy Hutton) knows it. So too, at least eventually, does his wife (Jill Hennessy).
All this would hardly make for surprising cinema — except for the fact that its minor detail is so good, sentiment is always kept at bay, it is very funny and the cast know exactly what they are doing. Baldwin in particular, an actor who only improves with age, is terrific as the philandering father. The torrid scene between him and his strung-out wife when she finds out his latest infidelity is worth the price of admission alone.
Martin Scorsese was the executive producer on Lymelife, which turns out to be a mark of its quality. It’s a small film but almost perfectly formed.
Lymelife
Cert: 15
