The Suicide Squad

When life hands you a scandal and you get fired by Disney, what do you do? Well, if you’re James Gunn, you get an offer from DC to take on any project you want and – despite your tragic opinions about Martin Scorsese (don’t get me started) – you absolutely kill it. No stranger to action and superhero films, James Gunn is here to save the summer with “The Suicide Squad,” a witty, action-packed blockbuster to surprise even the harshest of Gunn critics.

Image courtesy of Warner Brothers Pictures

As someone who couldn’t have possibly been more excited for and simultaneously let down by David Ayers’ 2016 “Suicide Squad,” see: Ayers’ complaints about the late stage, post-production madness that Warner Brothers imparted upon his edit; I was pleasantly surprised that my, albeit low, expectations were wildly surpassed. Full of action, witty and irreverent humor, and the most creative title cards I’ve seen in ages, “The Suicide Squad” was the most fun film I’ve seen all year. Bringing the heat with a hilarious rollercoaster of events and never taking itself too seriously, James Gunn brings his unique style to the table to offer up a surprisingly unpredictable new take on “the famous suicide squad.”

The star-studded film included several key players from David Ayers’ “Suicide Squad,” but is not so much a sequel or reboot of the original as it is a fresh take on the characters that we all know and love. Incorporating several “new” characters from the comics, and not being afraid to kill anyone off, Gunn breathed a new life into the DC Universe, immediately starting rumors of spin offs and prequels that I hate to say I’m actually excited for.

While seeing the list of big names included in this film might give you a headache from the jump, rather than getting lost in a number of character’s storylines like Ayers’ “Suicide Squad,” Gunn takes the star power associated with the title and groups them into teams, allowing them to serve a real purpose rather than getting lost in introductions and background storylines that suffocate the plot of the film. The title cards that guide the audience through time and different locations plant themselves so seamlessly within the film that it never seems to demand your attention be in a million places at once in order to try to stay on track. Gunn uses these cinematic tools and a very defined three act structure to guide the viewer through the film, without ever giving away the destination.

After gathering two teams of anti-heroes to complete a mission on a far away island housing a giant alien starfish, Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) reminds everyone of the importance of her mission, and the lengths she will go to to ensure its successful completion. The violence that ensues is more than well deserving of the film’s R-rating, but never becomes so intense that it becomes distracting. Gunn uses his signature humor to turn the darker moments of the film around and to remind us of how intrepid, yet seriously dumb, our anti-heroes really are.

Between flowers shooting out of the back of Harley Quinn’s head on one of her infamous shooting sprees, a giant shark snacking on people, and someone’s body being ripped to shreds by helicopter blades – “The Suicide Squad” finds it’s place in the action comedy by integrating the touching lessons of life, love, undying dedication, and sacrifice that are at the heart of any good story. Flipping what we thought we knew about each of the characters on it’s head, Gunn’s take on the squad makes the audience put their former assumptions about the notorious bounty hunters on the back burner.

Never clearly defining the good guys and the bad guys, Gunn takes audiences on an adventure that they’re not soon to forget. Among the most memorable character arcs in the film, “Daddy’s Little Monster” has left The Joker in the dust, for good, and has developed a red flag radar that just might have made her my favorite comic book character to ever exist. While Gunn’s new take on the squad certainly won’t leave audiences questioning their purpose on this Earth, or whether or not their values and morals are valid, “The Suicide Squad” doesn’t waste a second of its 2 hour and 13 minute runtime.

Earning my dad’s generous review: “The Suicide Squad was almost like Fast & Furious bullshit wise, but pretty entertaining;” I’d say “The Suicide Squad” earns an A-.

“The Suicide Squad” is now in theaters and streaming for free on HBOmax.

Stillwater

Matt Damon pulls up to the Sonic Drive-In on 6^th Street in Stillwater, orders a Sonic burger, tots, and a cherry limeade, and prays over his Sonic meal to kick off the latest film from Oscar-winning director of “Spotlight,” Tom McCarthy. Matt Damon’s Bill Baker is a performance that is sure to go down in history as an unsuspected, but powerful role for Damon. This character, built upon backyard bbq’s in Marlow, Oklahoma, trips to McNellie’s Pub in OKC, and visits with actual roughnecks across the state; Bill Baker is the quintessential image of Oklahoma’s roughnecks.

“Stillwater” released out of competition at the 74^th edition of the Cannes Film Festival on July 8^th and ended in a well-deserved standing ovation that brought the star of the film, Matt Damon, to tears. Damon noted during a press conference for the film the next day that, although it was his 5^th return to Cannes, it “felt like the first time… To be in a room with a thousand other people who are strangers, but who are part of the same community ‘cause we all love the same thing. It was such a great reminder of why we do this.”

Initially inspired by the Amanda Knox case and the immeasurable love that a father has for his daughter, “Stillwater” is the redemption arc of a down-home, Oklahoman roughneck father who has failed his daughter for much of her life – being gone on jobs throughout the majority of her childhood, and turning to alcohol and drugs while he was home. Bill Baker’s daughter, Alison, played by Abigail Breslin, is in prison in Marseilles for the murder of her college girlfriend after deciding to leave Oklahoma State University to go to school in France for no other reason than “it was different – far away.”

Damon’s Bill Baker, now clean and sober, tries as hard as he can to repair the relationship with his daughter that he shattered so long ago, feeling guilty for the position that she’s found herself in. Alison’s mother killed herself when Alison was just a child, but Bill still has lunch with his mother-in-law and even tries to help her pay his bills with money that he barely has enough of himself. Bill is on his latest two-week trip to Marseilles to visit his daughter in prison, to do her laundry, and to bring her new pieces of home. The image of a gold “Stillwater” necklace in the airport giftshop serves not only as the film’s title card inspiration, but will become the glue that pieces together the plot at hand throughout a number of twists and turns that leave the audience constantly questioning.

Upon arriving at his trusty Marseilles Best Western Hotel, Bill is met with rowdy neighbors. Camille Cottin’s single mother, Virginie, and young daughter Maya who is played by a scene stealing Lilou Siauvaud are staying in the room next door while their apartment is being repaired. Virginie would soon become Bill’s confidante, helping him to navigate the culture shock of being an Oklahoman in France. After learning about a new piece of intel that might help to find the real killer of Alison’s college girlfriend, Bill is tasked with staying in Marseilles as the lead is investigated. When Alison’s lawyer refuses to look into the tip, Bill moves in with Virginie and Maya, creating a platonic family structure that allows him the chance to be the father that he never could be to Alison – if he can only manage not to screw it up over the months he spends in Marseilles.

A far cry from “Jason Bourne” but mirroring the emotion of his breakout role in “Good Will Hunting,” Damon’s performance, while not career defining, was certainly the honest and intimate role the actor has been looking for. Damon’s Bill Baker feels like the brutally honest roughneck that he aimed to be, never questioning his motives or beliefs; most memorably when Virginie tells him he’s “acting very American,” to which he responds “Good, because I am” and not offering a moment of hesitation when asked by his French counterparts if he voted for Trump or if he owns any guns. Bill Baker is a caricature of the values of the Oklahoma roughneck, without ever becoming too cartoonish or offensive. The months that Damon spent around Oklahoma, studying people and culture, served him well in his portrayal.

The film yearns to address not only on how the French see Americans, but how the “justice” that people think they seek isn’t actually justice at all. Casting a light on broken government systems both at home and abroad without reaching too far into the controversial, political cookie-jar, McCarthy balances his plot along the line of the lengths a father will go to protect his daughter and the way Bill’s growth throughout the film leaves him forever changed.

“Stillwater” challenges the audience’s expectations for the film and leaves golden easter eggs throughout that manage not to distract from the mystery and immediacy of the plot. The twists and turns of the story land on a brutally emotional and unexpected final scene that is sure to leave audiences with the message that was always at the core of the film. The ending offers the characters a chance at a new beginning in a world that Bill Baker no longer recognizes; knowing that he can never again return to the home and the rose-colored vision of the world that he once knew and held so dear to his heart.

“Stillwater” had its world premiere at Festival de Cannes 2021 on July 8^th. Focus Features will release it in theaters in the United States on July 30^th.

Val

Tasked with the immeasurable job of packaging over four decades worth of home movies into a two-hour documentary film, Ting Poo and Leo Scott told Val Kilmer’s story of his rollercoaster rise to fame and the depths that followed – Val’s way, in this first-person account of his life. Narrated by his son, Jack Kilmer, “Val” invites audiences to take an intimate look at Val’s life and career from his days growing up on a farm making movies with his two brothers, to his battle with pharyngeal cancer that left him with a hole in his throat and a voice box that he must plug to be able to communicate. “Val” gives audiences a look at the life of an actor – the good, the bad, and the ugly – like it’s a fireside chat with an old friend, reminiscing about the past.

Val tells his story through his decades of home video footage and his son’s voice, telling audiences that he was one of the first people he ever knew to own a video camera. The footage begins in Kilmer’s childhood where he and his two brothers created home movies on Super 8 film, directed by their youngest brother Wesley who would die at the age of 15 after having a seizure in the family’s jacuzzi and drowning. Kilmer attributed much of his successful career to the inspiration he gained from Wesley, who died just after Val left to attend Juilliard, where he would become one of the founders of the first stage acting program at the illustrious school.

The thousands of hours of footage amassed by Kilmer over the years served to give audiences an honest, behind-the-scenes look at the filming of many of Kilmer’s most famous projects from stage to silver screen; including his first major role, which would find him falling to third lead behind Kevin Bacon and Sean Penn in his 1983 Broadway debut in “Slab Boys.” The film dives into his breakthrough role in “Top Secret,” his budding friendship with Tom Cruise in “Top Gun,” one of his most famous and memorable roles as Huckleberry in “Tombstone” alongside Kurt Russell. Val even invites us into his world of method acting for his role as Jim Morrison in “The Doors”- which would play a major role in ending his marriage – his unsatisfying time as “Batman,” his tumultuous experience alongside his hero Marlon Brando in “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” and more. Before the film’s end, the audience is flashed with an image of Val in each of his soirees onto the silver screen, from “Top Secret” to James Franco’s indie film “Palo Alto.”

As much an in memoriam to Kilmer’s vast career as an explanation of who he is, “Val” pulls back the covers on what it truly means to be an artist and to live as unapologetically as possible. The film dives into the struggles he faced throughout his shiny career and the effects these things – the death of his brother, his divorce, his massive debts, the loss of his mother, and the loss of his voice – continue to have on him to this day. Through brutally open and honest monologues, Kilmer lets us into his head about the struggles of his career, his physical and mental health, and what it means to him to be selling the memory of his past to make ends meet. Filled with touching memories of when he fell in love, raising his children, and his successes and failures as an actor; “Val” offers an intimate look into the experiences that shaped Kilmer into the enigma that we’ve come to recognize.

The audience is also taken on a deep dive of Kilmer’s one-man show “Cinema Twain,” which was a passion-project stage production that Kilmer planned to take on a tour of the country. He was hoping he would use the success of this stage tour to finance his directorial debut and turn “Cinema Twain” into a feature length film. After having to postpone a show in Nashville for what Kilmer thought would be “a week or two,” this dream was cut short when Kilmer’s health began to decline. Having always wanted to morph his acting career into one of writing and directing, Kilmer’s dream of telling the story of what it truly means to be an actor took on a new shape and was brought to life through the decades of footage he’d been unknowingly collecting for this exact reason. His archives and the hard work and dedication of directors Ting Poo and Leo Scott came together to finally make these dreams a reality, despite insurmountable odds.

At the premiere of the film at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, Scott remarked that from day one of creating “Val,” Kilmer was adamant about the conditions of the film’s premiere and where it would be shown to audiences for the first time. A premiere at Cannes was the only option. Although Kilmer was unable to attend the festival in person, his children Jack and Mercedes were present to accept the well-deserved standing ovation as the credits began to roll.

To even try to begin to describe the impact of this film and Val Kilmer’s incredible career would be an absolute disservice. My favorite film of the festival, “Val” is not only a reminder that fame and fortune do not amount to happiness, but that the beauty of honesty and vulnerability are part of what makes life so meaningful. A magical, raw, and creative collection of mere moments in a man’s life, “Val” is just the medium Kilmer needed to be able to act as himself in the telling of his life story.

“Val” premiered at Festival de Cannes 2021 on July 7^th and will be released in theaters by Amazon Studios on July 23^rd. The documentary will be available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video on August 6^th.

Where is Anne Frank

Ari Folman takes another dive into animation with his latest film “Where is Anne Frank.” More than a decade in the making, Folman’s latest was created at a number of studios across the globe after being commissioned by the Anne Frank Fonds Basel in 2009. Anyone familiar with Folman’s previous animation projects (“Waltz with Bashir” and “The Congress”) will recognize the artful ways in which Folman wraps questions of morality in a cartoonish box, making the obvious lessons accessible to audiences of all ages. This track record was just what The Foundation was looking for, hoping to make the story of Anne Frank, and so many others, relevant for younger generations as deniers of the Holocaust continue to rise across the globe.

imdb.com. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3454424/.

“Where is Anne Frank” is a modern retelling of the Holocaust story we are all taught in the 8^th grade, bringing Anne Frank’s treasured diary back to life through a new lens, the personification of her dearest imaginary friend Kitty to whom her diary was addressed. “A year from now,” as a terrible storm rages over Amsterdam and the building where the Frank family, along with four other people, hid from the Nazi’s from July 1942 until they were taken to their first work camp in August 1944, at the beginning of the end of the war. As hundreds of tourists line up in the pelting rain, lightning strikes and a crack of thunder shatters the glass case containing Anne’s diary. As if the pen were crying for Anne, a drop of ink lands on the diary before the words magically lift from the pages and dance into the form of Anne’s best friend, Kitty.

Kitty, a 13-year-old, freckled girl, with Anne’s smile and curly, bright red hair is standing in the lobby of the Anne Frank Museum, invisible to the guards and the museum’s curator who insists that they put Anne’s diary in her room because “it will look like it belongs.” Kitty sits on Anne’s bed, invisible, curious of the voyeurs invading Anne’s personal space and reading her diary. Kitty is soon parading the streets of a near-future Amsterdam before realizing she dissolves back into ink if she strays too far from the diary.

Kitty, believing that if she’s still alive, Anne must be too, begins her hunt across the Netherlands for her best friend. While searching for Anne through the streets of Amsterdam, Kitty discovers that upon leaving the museum she is no longer invisible and meets a man enjoying a smoke at a local café who asks her if she’d filed a missing person’s report for her friend. Refusing to speak to German police, Kitty is pointed to the Dutch police, and meets a refugee child Awa who, along with her family, later ends up in a refugee camp. The chief of police, finding it hilarious that someone named Kitty would be looking for her best friend Anne Frank, is reminded by another officer what an impact the young girl had on the people of Amsterdam and how not only many young girls, but also nearly every surrounding bridge, library, and theater are named after Anne Frank. Thus begins Kitty’s journey to find Anne.

The first friend she meets is a pickpocket that she spotted earlier in the museum, Peter, who runs a camp for refugees that have traveled their way through Europe searching for asylum but are facing deportation. The same camp where Kitty will meet Awa and her family again. These refugees hold a mirror to the threat faced by the Jews during the rule of the Third Reich and bridge the gap between the genocidal ideology of 1940s Germany and the lack of possibilities for freedom and protection of the children forced to flee their brutally violent countries today.

Through a series of flashbacks, we see Anne confiding her deepest secrets, hopes, and desires to her best friend Kitty from the beginning of the war to the day that Anne, her sister Margot, or both – “does it even matter?” Anne remarks – is called to the children’s “work camps.” The Frank family is forced to pack their things and go into hiding, beginning the more than two-year stint in an attic and trips to two concentration camps that only Otto would come to survive; Anne, her sister Margot, and their mother Edith dying at the Bergen-Belsen extermination camp, only days before the Allied forces would win the war. The Frank family was on the last train that would ever deliver passengers to the Bergen-Belsen camp, along with hundreds of others including both of Ari Folman’s parents, who would be among the few that were lucky enough to survive the camp.

One of the most poignant scenes of the film is when Anne is describing to Kitty what it means to be Jewish stating that “Being Jewish means making a decision that you’ll take on the Jews’ destiny and their history.” Kitty accepts these terms, and Anne insists that she is not Jewish because she hoped Kitty would be like her in every way except for those that mattered. Kitty demands that Anne gives her the freedom to make the choice for herself, reminding the audience more than Anne that we are all in some way tasked with remembering the history of the Holocaust and the lessons that must be learned.

Glittered with the humor of arguments over cabbage and Madame’s farts at the dinner table and a reminder that dentists are in fact sadists, Folman’s “Where is Anne Frank” is designed with enough mystery and magic to appeal to young children without traumatizing them with the horrendous fate faced by Anne and more than 1.5 Million other children throughout Europe during the events of World War II. Folman’s towering 15 foot tall, cloaked and masked Nazi soldiers goosestep through the streets during Anne’s flashbacks, reminding us of the fear and oppression that Jews faced as they were being driven out of society; but Folman artfully dances between the trauma of the reality of the times, the hope that Anne had and the magic that she found in her imagination through her diary, and what these things mean for the situations that we’re seeing in society today.

Certainly aware of who his audience is, Folman avoids the gut-wrenching severity of Anne’s end, instead focusing on the fact that Kitty’s friend is never far because she lives on through the memories of millions. Scenes of teenagers glued to their phones during a stage production of the Anne Frank story, Kitty’s public outbursts that snap everyone to attention, high speed ice skate chases, and a heartwarming love story as Kitty truly comes to life in more ways than one, come together to set the scene for Folman to teach his lesson by telling a story that is sure to resonate with audiences of all ages.

A deeply introspective film that focuses less on the content of the diary itself and more on what life would be like were we all to forget the lessons that Anne left us, “Where is Anne Frank” is sure to become a staple in education across the globe. A cartoon that makes the importance of remembering the holocaust digestible and modern without being condescending or overtly political, this film is a reminder that Anne’s hope and imagination can be an inspiration for change even today. This film is a reminder of how important it is that we continue to be reminded of the terrors that so many innocent Jews faced because of their religion and continue to fight so that we can protect marginalized and oppressed populations from ever facing a similar fate.

“Where is Anne Frank” premiered at Festival de Cannes on July 9^th and is currently seeking distribution in the United States.

I Am the Night

If you’re late to the party, let me go ahead and tell you now: if you’re into true crime, you’re into I Am the Night. This limited series airing on TNT dives into the true crime world as it investigates the infamous Los Angeles homicide case of the Black Dahlia from a perspective that we’ve never seen.

The series is based on a book written by Fauna Hodel, played by India Eisley), about her own journey to find her truth and the darkness she encountered along her path. After finding out she was adopted, Fauna gets in touch with her biological grandfather, Dr. George Hodel (Jefferson Mays), who invites her to visit him in Los Angeles. Aching to uncover her true identity, Fauna leaves home and boards a bus to the city of angels. Her rocky journey to find her overtly busy grandfather leads Fauna to a journalist (Chris Pine) with his eyes set on restoring his career after it came crashing down as a result of his previous investigation into Dr. Hodel’s abortion clinic and possible connection to the Black Dahlia case. Fauna’s journey quickly shows her that there is much more to discover below the surface and she must put herself in uncomfortable and dangerous situations before she is able to uncover the mysteries of her biological family.

This series is based on the real life of Fauna Hodel and attempts to not only unmask the debauchery practiced by her ‘grandfather,’ Dr. George Hodel, but serves to investigate the perplexing life of the journalist, Jay Singletary’s quest to prove Dr. Hodel’s criminal, and to regain his own notoriety as a journalist. Singletary’s character is also a pawn used to address drug addiction and alcoholism, as well as the lack of attention paid to mental health and veterans suffering from PTSD. While Singletary is not actually based on a single person from Fauna’s life, he helps to drive the story in the direction of Fauna’s understanding of herself and the enigma of her family.

To this day, the case of the Black Dahlia remains officially unsolved, but I Am the Night attempts to corroborate the narrative that it was Hodel who committed this heinous crime. The show was filmed on location at the Sowden House, the former home of Dr. George Hodel, where it is rumored that he ran his illegal abortion clinic out of the basement. This is also the location that is believed to be where the Black Dahlia’s body was dissected and mutilated before being left on a Los Angeles street. The house brings a sense of urgency and authenticity to this period piece, reminding the viewer that the story being told is based on fact and heightening the suspense during each step of Fauna’s attempts to uncover her background. Directed by Patty Jenkins, this series is a modern take on classic crime noir, and each episode is full of suspense from beginning to end. Four episodes into the series, we seem to have many more questions than answers, and there is an array of possibilities of where the story will turn next, but each cliffhanger leaves you craving more.

I Am the Night leaves the viewers searching for the answers that Fauna and Jay want so badly to uncover themselves, allowing the viewer to invest themselves in the journey and root for the protagonists. A large number of character arcs maintain the excitement and mystery of the show, as every step that seems to be in the right direction leads to a new character and more unsolved questions about who George Hodel truly is.

With only two episodes left in the series, we are surely in for a ride as we continue to tease away the truth of Dr. George Hodel, find out if Jay will be able to redeem himself, and see if Fauna receives more than she bargained for. Only time will tell if this series will live up to the true life and experiences of Fauna Hodel, or if it will even begin to answer any of questions we have about the Black Dahlia, or continue to make us wonder. However, if the rumors of a continued series are true, well… let me just say that Jay Singletary and his white sneakers are enough to bring me back for more.

Beautiful Boy

Beautiful Boy tells a riveting and heartbreaking tale of a father and son duo, living out the tortures that come along with drug addiction. The film is based on two separate books written by David and Nic Sheff, detailing their lives while battling addiction and the struggles that come along with it.

David Sheff, played by Steve Carell, is a journalist in San Francisco. Divorced from his first wife, and the mother of his son Nic, David maintains custody of his son, played by Timothee Chalamet. The film begins as we see David seeking out help to better understand what his son is going through as a crystal meth addict. The story then embarks on a journey detailing the seemingly unbreakable bond between the father and son. Nic’s mother lives in Los Angeles while he lives with his father, step-mother, and two younger siblings from his fathers second marriage in San Francisco. We see flashbacks of Nic and David throughout the year, chronicling Nic’s childhood and the impending destruction of his relationship with his father, and have a front row seat to watch David try to grapple with the fact that he didn’t know his son as well as he previously believed.

We watch the relationship between David and Nic fall apart as Nic falls deeper into the throes of his addiction. David and his wife Karen play the loving caretakers, looking out for Nic’s best interest when he is admitted to rehab for the first time. Nic, with a history of running away from his problems rather than facing them, quickly enters the first of many relapses that will continue to test the boundaries of his father’s support.

As David reminisces on his time raising Nic, and tries to understand where he went wrong, or what lead to his son turning toward drugs, there seems to be no evidence as to why this has happened. David struggles to come to terms with the fact that his son has put himself into this dangerous situation and seems to want to try to understand why Nic continues to regress. Emotions are high and each time David tries to break new ground he is met with anger and opposition from Nic.

David goes as far as reaching out to doctors and continuously doing research on addiction to try to maintain hope, or find a way to better help his son, but each time we think Nic is finally in a position to pull himself out of the depths of addiction, he relapses, turning up again in worse shape than ever before.

Nic says the drugs have allowed him to feel a way nothing else ever has; saying it took his life “from black and white to technicolor.” Like many people, it takes Nic hitting his absolute lowest, and his father finally conceding that there is nothing else he can do for his son, to realize he has to make a change for himself to beat his addiction to drugs. After breaking into his fathers home, and promptly running away to avoid facing his father and the disappointment that he feels, Nic’s girlfriend overdoses and nearly loses her life. Nic calls his father begging to come home, saying that he’s ready to face and overcome his addiction, but that he can only do so on his own terms, at home, with the strength of his father, step-mom, and siblings by his side. David tells Nic that he loves him, but that would be impossible. He has decided that he can’t help him and that he can no longer handle the outbursts, relapses, and struggles that Nic continues to put him through. He tells him he loves him, wishes him the best and hangs up the phone.

The one thing missing from this film is the dark truth of how drugs and alcohol ravish the bodies of addicts. This story focuses on the mental and emotional pain and suffering of Nic and the people closest to him, while providing only a sprinkle of the imagery associated with the disease of drug addiction. Even after multiple instances of overdose, Nic appears as if he could easily hide the fact that he’s been addicted to crystal meth for years. There is only one scene in the film that even begins to show the severity of the toll that the drugs have taken on his body, in which we see him shooting up in the bathroom of the diner he often visited with his father as a child. The tracks on his arm are like an image straight out of Requiem for a Dream, but this imagery is really the only thing convincing the audience that Nic is a drug addict, rather than a feverishly ill teenager.

This film is a heartbreaking look into drug addiction and the effects that it has on not only the person suffering from addiction, but the people who care the most about them. It is a stark reminder of the seriousness of the condition, as well as the amount of work it takes to overcome. The film includes information about what drugs such as crystal meth do to the brain and how they damage the human body, and closes with information detailing Nic’s road to recovery over the last 8 years.

With striking and emotional performances by both Carell and Chalamet, it comes as no surprise that Chalamet received Golden Globe nods for his performance as Nic. Carell, seemingly out of his niche as a comedian, delves into his role in drama and gracefully delivers the emotion that conveys the pain that David Sheff felt as he watched his son slowly fall apart before his eyes.