Sandcooler
This movie doesn't as much tell a story as it conveys a feeling, and that feeling is "mind-numbingly depressed". Casey Affleck is wonderful in this movie. He managed to be sad for 90 minutes without ever hamming things up, which makes that one outburst of joy he has very beautiful. Sadly, this film is somewhat held back by one rather typical indie cliché: its lack of pace. We're not just dealing with a slow-moving plot here, because there is no plot. It's just a slow-moving bunch of scenes. Most of the scenes go on for a bit too long, others are just plain unnecessary. Thank God the occasional dark humour can bring something extra, because parts of this movie are really quite boring. Nevertheless, Jim is a compelling character, and Steve Buscemi appears to be quite talented as a director, so this is still worth seeing.
bernie-122
I only was interested in this film because it was directed by Steve Buscemi. I am a dyed-in-the-wool fan of Steve and will cheerfully watch anything with him in it.So, being a good actor doesn't necessarily make one a good director, but I thought Trees Lounge was pretty good, even though it was hard for me to really enjoy because I don't drink, and the movie was all about drinking.The next one I saw was Animal Factory, which I found to be bland, conventional and unrealistic, lacking the grit of real prison life. But this was the fault of the screenplay, not the direction, so I don't blame Steve for that.The same applies to Lonesome Jim. Here the fault is in the writing and the casting. While Casey Affleck is light-years ahead of brother Ben in acting ability, he's still pretty wooden and one-dimensional. Liv Tyler looks nice, but should do something else for a living. Mary Kay Place is a stereotype sitcom Mom.The plot may have been alright if it had culminated in some sensible denouement, but it didn't. That's not Steve's fault. He did a good job with the dismal story he had to work with.I guess the problem with both this one and Animal Factory is that they are both way too boring and conventional to be accepted as good independent cinema. We supporters of the Indies are always expecting them to push the envelope and deliver what Hollywood is incapable of. No envelope-pushing here, it's treading very safe ground.
tangoviudo
"Lonesome Jim" was directed by Steve Buscemi - a fact I missed when I first watched it. I thought it was a tad too methodical in its portrayal of a guy who is the sole author of his own misery. The film poster says it all - he lives under his own dark cloud.But Buscemi accomplished something quite well - he made the entire film feel like the inside of Jim's head. Casey Affleck proves once again where all the talent went in his family - not to Ben. And Liv Tyler continues to surprise, not so much with her talent as with her odd choice of roles. But I can't complain about an actress being TOO pretty for a part. Mary Kay Place is excellent in a completely unbelievable part - the all-forgiving, long-suffering mother. Only Seymour Cassell comes off perfectly straight as Jim's dad.But the giveaway of the film is the character of Evil, who drives a scooter with a helmet painted with skulls. How he is eventually nabbed is truly hilarious - a touch that Buscemi couldn't have pulled off with a straight face. In fact, the entire film could be looked at as a kind of existentialist comedy. Jim tells his brother that his life is a tragedy, so his brother drives his car into a tree. The kids' basketball team hasn't scored a single basket all season - so in the climactic game they manage to score - one basket.Set in Indiana, the film stinks of middle-America - the ugly towns encroaching on the country, the dank weather, a world with low ceilings and no windows. Just the kind of world a young person would leave because there are no opportunities. Trains are constantly driving through town, never stopping. The only escape is by bus - which Jim has to take (but somehow doesn't take) at the film's conclusion.
muerco
This is the most pure example of American independent film that I've seen in years. Zeroing in on a few characters, a limited situation, perfectly consistent in tone (which might be characterized as realist-deadpan), simply yet effectively done--this is the best Raymond Carver adaptation ever made, yet of course it's not even based on one of his stories (it's based on a fine original screenplay by James Strouse).It seems like back in the late '80s films like this were made, but very rarely are anymore, when every independent film has become either a star vehicle or a strident, obvious Satire. This film (like Buscemi's also marvelous "Trees Lounge") seems organic to the story it's telling. I came to the film knowing nothing about it, had no idea where it was going or what it was up to, and was always happily surprised that it didn't take the cheap route through anything.The performances are all excellent. Mary Kay Place perfectly plays the all-American mom and without calling undue attention to himself Affleck absolutely embodies a type we've all met many times before but rarely see on screen with this level of detail. Even Liv Tyler is good. But a special word should be said about Buscemi as a director. There's nothing fancy in how he works yet he seems to know completely how to shape a movie, getting the most out of his actors and the bland settings that the drama plays out in. I wish we had more darkly comic, substantial, humane films like this. I really hope Buscemi gets to make many more films.
AD
