Just reading the synopsis, Lymelife sounds like your average art-house theater fare. The film is a look at life in Long Island in the late 1970’s as seen through the eyes of a teenager and, as such is exactly what you should expect to see at your neighborhood independent theater. In this case, however, the writing, directing and most especially the acting result in a movie that is very personal and truly outstanding. The comedy/drama follows two families as they slowly fall apart. Scott Bartlett (Rory Culkin) is our viewpoint character, the shy, nerdy teenaged son of boisterous Mickey (Alec Baldwin) and quiet Brenda (Jill Hennessy). Scott has been schoolmates with Adrianna Bragg (Emma Roberts) his whole life and has probably been in love with her for the same amount of time. Adrianna’s father, Charlie has been diagnosed with Lyme Disease and has grown distant from his wife, Melissa (Cynthia Nixon) who must now make up for Charlie’s being unemployed by going to work with Mickey. Things begin to deteriorate as Melissa starts seeking comfort from Mickey, Scott becomes the only person that Charlie can relate to anymore and Scott’s older brother Jimmy (Kieran Culkan) returns home on leave from the military, exposing and confronting Mickey on his wayward, womanizing behavior. However, all those events are overshadowed by an even more devastating issue: Adrianna seems to be returning Scott’s interest.
Any film that has both Alec Baldwin and Timothy Hopkins in it is going to have some strong performances and Lymelife does not disappoint. However, while Baldwin and Hopkins deliver outstanding work, the big surprise for me was Rory Culkin. I had previously seen him in Signs and thought he did reasonably well. In the few years between he has really come into his own as an actor and gives an amazing performance here. I’ve missed all the films he’s done between then and now, but feel compelled to see them if only to watch his performance. It was a perfect casting choice to have his real-life brother, Kieran, play Rory’s older brother in the film. They have a sibling chemistry that would not have worked with anyone else and only serves to elevate this film even further into the realm of greatness. Emma Roberts does a great job playing the fickle Adrianna and Jill Hennessy proves once again why she deserves to have a few award statues on her mantle at home. Rounding out this stellar cast is Cynthia Nixon, who seems to effortlessly inhabit any role that’s thrown at her and never seems to give the same performance twice. All in all, these are the perfect actors for these roles and the combined chemistry is amazing and really gives the whole production the right amount of realism.
Lymelife was written by written by brothers Derick Martini and Steven Martini, with Steven scoring the film and Derick stepping into the Director’s chair for the first time. This is the duo’s most personal film to date as they draw upon aspects of their childhood. Steven’s score, which is performed by his band, accents the visuals perfectly and never overpowers what’s on the screen. There are some supplemental period songs that work to great effect as well. Derick wisely chooses to direct this film in a more or less straightforward manner without getting artsy. He does choose some key moments to depict in dialogue-free closeup that focuses squarely on a character’s reaction to a situation, but with the cast he’s chosen that is the exact right choice in those moments. For someone who grew-up in Northeast during the seventies, I felt a definite sense of deja-vu watching Lymelife and in a very warmly nostalgic sense. The script is sharp and the dialogue natural and poignant. The only true shame here is that the film isn’t getting a wider release, but I’m sure you’ll be able to find a small theater in your area to experience this terrific movie.
