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Movies / On DVD / Lonesome Jim
Lonesome Jim

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Lonesome Jim (2006)

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Reviews Counted:87

Fresh:51

Rotten:36

Average Rating:6/10

Consensus: Though Lonesome Jim is leavened by sweet, understated humor, it's hard to root for such a morose, self-defeating protagonist.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 87 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Mar 24, 2006 Limited

Synopsis: With LONESOME JIM, director Steve Buscemi delivers another low-budget gem about small-town American life. Boasting a fresh script courtesy of James C. Strouse, the film begins when 27-year-old Jim... With LONESOME JIM, director Steve Buscemi delivers another low-budget gem about small-town American life. Boasting a fresh script courtesy of James C. Strouse, the film begins when 27-year-old Jim (Casey Affleck) returns to his small Indiana town after having failed to make a dent as a writer in New York City. Depressed beyond comprehension, Jim must contend with his actively suicidal brother (Kevin Corrigan), insane mother (Mary Kay Place), and dangerously clueless uncle (Mark Boone Junior). Along the way, he meets a too-good-to-be-true nurse, Anika (Liv Tyler), and begins coaching his niece's hapless basketball squad. As time passes, the fog threatens to hang around forever, making Jim wonder if returning home might have been the worst mistake of all. Hilarious in its honesty, tender in its performances, and compassionate in its direction, LONESOME JIM is an example of superior independent filmmaking. Casey Affleck and Liv Tyler deliver especially wonderful performances, giving three-dimensional depth to characters that could potentially have come off as one-note clichés. One can only hope that audiences will see through the low-budget production values and embrace the film's universal themes. [More]

Starring: Casey Affleck, Liv Tyler, Mary Kay Place, Seymour Cassel

Starring: Casey Affleck, Liv Tyler, Mary Kay Place, Seymour Cassel, Kevin Corrigan, Mark Boone

Director: Steve Buscemi

Director: Steve Buscemi
Screenwriter: James C. Strouse
Producer: Celine Rattray, Jake Abraham
Studio: IFC Films

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Release:

Aug 29, 2006

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Reviews for Lonesome Jim

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1 - 20 (sorted by source)
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Steve Buscemi paints an honest picture of working class suburbia, where living rooms are covered with shag carpets and Applebees is the best restaurant in town.

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
03/24/06
Marcy Dermansky
Marcy Dermansky
About.com

... the story of Percyesque ex-suicide, a parable about how embracing childish things can be part of growing up.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
05/19/06
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

A slight, but amusing and occasionally touching, dark comedy about depression and dysfunction that percolates with indie film hipness.

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
04/20/06
Bob Longino
Bob Longino
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

An interesting but unsuccessful study, although viewers should be cautioned about falling victim to its malaise.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
05/06/06
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

Though Affleck does his best to humanize his one-note character, he's stuck in a script by first-time screenwriter James Strouse that works in broad strokes and trite moments.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
03/23/06
Keith Phipps
Keith Phipps
AV Club

Steve Buscemi's third film as a director is a low key affair delivered with a wry sense of humour.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/11/08
Paul Arendt
Paul Arendt
BBC

The problem is that a little of this minimalist kitchen-sink farce goes a very long way, and after a while Lonesome Jim starts to dry up.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
05/05/06
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
04/23/09
Peter Keough
Peter Keough
Boston Phoenix

Anchored by dry humor and purposefully understated performances, Lonesome Jim steadily builds in charm as it progresses.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
04/02/05
Francesca Dinglasan
Francesca Dinglasan
Boxoffice Magazine

It keeps us rooting for him even as we can't stop shaking our heads and chuckling at what an absolute pill he is.

Full Review Source: Capital Times (Madison, WI) | comment Comment
04/28/06
Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

Minimalist, moody and morose, Lonesome Jim is a minor gem.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
04/11/08
James Mottram
James Mottram
Channel 4 Film

[Strouse] has written a forlorn and poetic story, and Buscemi has made it into a movie about taking a deep breath and deciding to stop being a mope.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
03/30/06
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lonesome Jim -- despite its excellent cast, controlled direction and moody, well-judged atmospherics -- tends to alienate us, just as Affleck's Jim does.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
03/30/06
Michael Wilmington
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Affleck is simply too clean-cut for the role.

Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
03/23/06
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
Christian Science Monitor

Has great relevance to the lost adultolescent generation of today ... but it also flounders in its commonplace and too-familiar concept.

Full Review Source: Cinematical | comment Comment
09/17/07
Christopher Campbell
Christopher Campbell
Cinematical

An unintentional parody of Sundance Hades circa 1996

Full Review Source: CinePassion | comment Comment
08/30/09
Fernando F. Croce
Fernando F. Croce
CinePassion

"Lonesome Jim" is an earnest and modest 'little independent' movie that charms by way of its understated underachieving characters.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
04/20/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

The supposed randomness takes on an artificial, movie quality -- precisely the thing that Cassavetes worked so hard to avoid.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
03/31/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

As in 'Elizabethtown' and 'Jersey Girl,' the hero doesn't have to do anything but exist to attract the devoted attentions of a beautiful woman, a sexist fantasy of entitlement as insidious (if unacknowledged) as that found in an old Rat Pack movie.

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
05/03/06
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

Has the delighfully deadpan face of a Bill Murray.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
03/20/06
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve
 
 
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