Review of Beautiful Boy (2018) by Lisa T — 09 Nov 2018

The acting by Carrell, Chalamet, and the other actors was great, I dont want to take away from the praise that they deserve, but I cant pretend I wasn't left brutally disappointed at the end of the film.

Having earnestly devoured David and Nic Sheff's books years earlier, and being an on-again/off-again drug addict myself, I was expecting this movie to shatter stigmas surrounding addiction and break barriers between addicts and those who dont understand the totality of the horrific nature of addiction.

This movie was bland at best. It was a painfully generic and recycled tale of addiction, recovery, and relapse - it's been done before and will be done again, probably better. The film left out key elements of Nic Sheff's story, as told in his memoir "Tweak," which to an extent I understand - you cant fit three books (from two vastly opposing perspectives) into one 2 hour movie - but Nic's book was so vibrant and full of captivating stories, and the writer failed to make Nic's character any more than a PG-rated, underdeveloped, kid who just strayed from the path and let down his father and the dreams he had for him.

Nic's story is gut-wretching, painful and real, and this movie just failed to convey that from all angles.