Lymelife

"Lymelife" is a coming-of-age story in the most discomforting sense, a portrayal of one young person having their trust broken down, then being assigned with the even more difficult task of moving on. It is the second indie dealing with crippling dysfunction and featuring the two younger Culkin brothers, after "Igby Goes Down," but that is where the similarities end.

While "Igby" deals with alienation and fractured family dynamics in an snarky, self-satisfied way (think "Juno" with a nasty streak,) Lymelife's situations come out more naturally- there a fewer smirks and and less sarcastic one-liners. In this, youngest Culkin Rory is the center of attention, and evokes a viewer's sympathy as Scott Bartlett, a sensitive, naive, and hormonally charged teen living in 70's Long Island.

Scott lives with his mom Marilyn (Jill Hennessy) and Dad Mick (Alec Baldwin,) a real-estate developer. Soon his older brother Jimmy comes back from military school, enthralling him with stories of handguns and grenades. Scott starts out with usual problems- avoiding the school bully and crushing on neighboring girl Adriana (Emma Roberts,) who is pretty but entirely involved in a game of hard-to-get with the meek Scott.

But Adriana has her own set of problems. Her father Charlie (Timothy Hutton) appears to have contracted Lyme Disease, causing periods of listless exhaustion and erratic behavior. Her second one is ironically enough, involve the Bartletts as well. While Scott remains happily blind to the family's entanglements, both Jimmy and Adriana bear the realization of the fact that Adriana's Mom, and Mick, who are real estate partners, have been crossing barriers of the platonic relationship for a long time.

Finally she tells Scott as bluntly as possible (which I will not tire you mentioning here,) forcing it to sink in. When it comes, it hardly surprises him. Now he understands the projection of paranoia from his mom's own suspensions (culminating in packing layers of tape on her children's sleeves to prevent a tick attack,) and his brother's dry, bitter cynicism.

"Lymelife," however, does not drop at this realization, but follows Scott as the pressure alters his perception on life and as his relationship with Adriana evolves, set in the backdrop of his parent's inevitable falling-out.

No doubt about it... the younger Culkin carries the movie. Whether being stringed along by Adriana or reacting to Mick's explosive temper, Scott's portrayal asks for the viewers care in the situation, as unoriginal as it may be. Hutton, too, portrays Charlie's fading sanity disturbingly, conveying with limited expressions the feeling of psychological stability being stretched to breaking point.

Hennessy, as the Culkin's mother, successfully pulls off a combination of neurosis and sympathy, but Keiren seems a side note, not terribly developed beyond a tense, telling scene with Mick and proof of his vicious temper (beating Scott's tormenter to a pulp.)

"Lymelife" finds atmosphere in banality, and invokes good performances by the main players. The problem remains, though- do we really need another coming of age/ family discord indie? The director, Derek Martini, must of known this... and something brilliant may have hatched from his efforts if he's put his acting, sensitivity, and characters into a vitally new situation. But we're left with a suburban dysfunction drama, more relatable than "The Squid and the Whale," with a careful realism and performances. That, I suppose, is enough. (Rated R)

Note: Beware the ending, not nearly as infuriating as the loose ends of "The Tracey Fragments" (Why did I sit through this?!) but not clever enough to restrain my natural indignation of a gimmick.