Beautiful Boy DVD10503

This harrowing tale, based on the memoirs of David (Steve Carell) and Nic Sheff (Timothee Chamalet), depicts the loving yet tumultuous father-son relationship throughout Nic’s battle with drug addiction. Both Carell and Chamalet earnestly portray what can only be described as a rollercoaster of a journey, mimicking the cyclical nature of relapse and recovery. David’s attempts at reclaiming his son (emotionally and physically), are barricaded by Nic’s inevitable “growing up”. Nic on the other hand is an inherently introverted and creative type, who is set on pursuing his own path. As he discovers harder drugs, we see his relationships deteriorate, including the ever-so-close one with his father. While the actors performances do not fall anything short of emotional, the overall narrative rings cliched and over-simplified at times. Nic’s love-affair with drugs is an honest depiction of the emotional and physical turmoil that is addiction. Yet the film lacks subtlety and nuance at time. And while not to discredit anyone’s personal journey with addiction, regardless of age, class, sex, race, etc. the film dances around the fact that a large portion of Nic’s recovery is owed to the fact that he is supported in an upper-middle class environment. Though he may choose not to live with his parents and enter state-of-the-art treatment facilities, he has the availability and option to do so. In this sense, Nic’s privilege, and the fact that he is a “beautiful boy”, inflict perhaps conflicting opinions of him: a charming young, straight-white-male who is unbearably spoiled by his circumstance. That being said, this is not to discredit any of his (or anyone’s) journey with an addictive disease, only to say that the moral of the story seems to ring “you can be saved if you have the means and environment to do so”.