Beautiful Boy

I want to try to keep this review rather short which will be difficult. BEAUTIFUL BOY is a movie on a very important subject that can lead to much discussion. The movies emphasis is on how drug addiction affects the whole family. I found the movie's heart in the right place but there were some missteps. Coming from the place of addiction myself the movie hit home in a lot of ways. The flashbacks to show the relationship between Nic and his father were important but did become overdone for me for they seemed to show Nic as pretty much perfect in them as well as their bond. And no one is perfect. I do wish more had been shown of Nic before using and as he started using other than those father/son flashbacks but luckily the viewer is able to get that look at the real Nic, the Nic that always existed through the amazing and groundbreaking performance by Timothee Chalamet. Again no one is perfect be it the parents or the children but there were signs Nic was not happy. Some people just don't understand why anyone would turn to drugs bottom line and you just must accept they do. It is indeed an illness and as the movie showed truthfully and loud and clear especially for crystal meth users the journey is terrible and recovery almost impossible. One needs to remember addiction recovery of any kind even alcohol is a difficult journey. The father kept trying to help his son and yes understand his using but I also saw an unwillingness after the initial shock to understand how his son may have really felt throughout his life. There was a lot of pressure to be a certain something from the father which the viewer sees crush Nic even more. Nothing is glorified here. They do refrain from truly showing the scene a drug addict lives but again it was seen through Timothee Chalamet's performance. I thought Steve Carrell was fine but for me all the parts of the movie came together when Chalamet was on screen. His real presence here is not merely acting. He truly becomes an addict down to every feeling, desire, craving, body movement and tic. I found the film showing the effect of an addict on the family didn't truly come to form till the second half and found Maura Tierney very underused but she had some amazing moments where she truly shined. But it was Chalamet. He is truly a wonder as an actor but here he is also so different from any other role he has had. This movie will raise many debates which is a good thing. It is superbly acted and is raw and honest. A truly must see I highly recommend.

I became an alcoholic at the age of 14. There were of course factors that precipitated a very severe descent into it, and I ended up in treatment at age 18. I actually came out of that treatment center as an alcoholic, and ended up shooting drugs with my fellow graduates. I have had many periods of abstinence with relapses. I do appreciate Steve Carrell's role as a grieving and caring father. But his role in his son's addiction is also apparent. He is actually addicted to his son and his son's drama. This is not to suggest that the father's "setting a boundary" and letting his son go in the face of death was a catalyst for his son's recovery. I am now 56 years old and have seen so many deaths, and have been on the other line when a junkie was just "asking for a pepsi and a pack of smokes," and then the next thing you hear, they are dead. This has happened to me on more than one occasion. I will always go to hell for another person rather than see them lying cold on a bathroom floor. So the message is outdated. Alanon and AA which espouse self preservation and letting the addict "hit bottom" in the face of the agony of addiction is not the ultimate solution. More evidence-based approaches, i.e. Gabor Mate's work, assert that the beginning of recovery for "hopeless" addicts is not the addict's compliance, but radical compassion for the addict's plight. On a "lighter" note, when my son was about 12 it became apparent that he was using, and I was in a state of denial about it, until he came home one night clearly high on Robitussin. I matter of factly told him that I understood, nothing to be ashamed of, however considering that both of his parents were addicts it was highly risky. And that whenever he needed help of any kind, I would be there. He has not used since. Maybe a glass of sake here and there, haha!