Review of You Can Count on Me (2000) by Adam G — 14 Feb 2004

[size=3]There are some films that can not really be described...any attempt to convey their unique power or effectiveness only shortchanges the movie. Kenneth Lonergan's directorial debut [i]You Can Count on Me [/i]is such a film. One could describe it merely as a talkative movie about a single mother trying to raise a child who must cope with the return home of her immature younger brother. Yet merely capsulizing the plot does not indicate the peculiar charm of this film, which uses remarkably authentic and believable dialogue to flesh out its characters and reveal hidden depths about their relationships. Essentially, [i]You Can Count on Me [/i]is simply a filmed character study...and there are times when Lonergan's roots as a playwright (rather than a kinetically inventive cinephile) are evident. However, the central performances are so superb that by the end of the film we actually feel like we know the people the movie portrays. Laura Linney plays a thirty-something single mother who still lives at her original childhood home...a place of both fond memories and tragic loss (her parents died in a car accident when she was an adolescent). She is raising a clever young child (Rory Culkin) while coping with a maddeningly distant new manager (Matthew Broderick) at work. To further complicate matters, Linney's younger brother (Mark Ruffalo) returns to town for a visit. Ruffalo's character is charming and clearly intelligent, but he has been a lifetime layabout: aimless, unemployed and generally surly about life. Lonergan examines the relationship between the two siblings, and how that relationship affects Linney's young son. What is remarkable about [i]You Can Count on Me [/i]is the way it manages to make this simple story so rich and vibrant, and communicate larger themes about life and love in tiny gestures rather than moments of grandstanding. The actors are all superb: Ruffalo is wonderfully witty yet also frustratingly stubborn, Culkin is not just a "cute" kid but a living child with true feelings, and Broderick is appropriately smarmy as the new bank manager. However, the movie belongs to Laura Linney, who delivers an effortlessly natural performance and genuinely conveys the life of her character. [i]You Can Count on Me [/i]is not only a wonderful showcase for its actors, but for its novice director as well. Kenneth Lonergan may still rely too much on dialogue to convey his themes (a trait that usually results in a short filmmaking career), but if the results of his style are films this profound, moving and true to life, then I hope he continues to work for many more years.[/size].

[size=3](BASIC)[/size].