Igby Goes Down (2002)

Synopsis: Meet IGBY SLOCUMB (Kieran Culkin), an iconoclastic young teenager and hapless product of a deplorable upbringing. Igby is the youngest member of the Slocumb family which, in reality, is four individuals reluctantly sharing familial... Meet IGBY SLOCUMB (Kieran Culkin), an iconoclastic young teenager and hapless product of a deplorable upbringing. Igby is the youngest member of the Slocumb family which, in reality, is four individuals reluctantly sharing familial blood ties, existing under one roof. The father, JASON SLOCUMB (Bill Pullman), is in the midst of a sojourn not just from work but from life in general. Igby's mother, MIMI SLOCUMB (Susan Sarandon), is a battle-hardened, icy-cold matriarch with a long-term dependency on friendly sedatives-her "little peppies." Igby's older brother, OLIVER SLOCUMB (Ryan Phillippe), has set his cruise control for Columbia University and is eager to embrace young Republicanism. Oliver personifies everything that Igby is not; and, though the two brothers are separated by three years, Igby has struggled since day one to emerge from Oliver's persistent shadow.

The Slocumb family's self-destructive curse is cemented when Igby's father's bewildering eccentricity evolves into a nervous breakdown. Igby refuses to follow the well-worn path of the brood, particularly Oliver's path. Since Igby was robbed of his childhood, he will certainly not give them the opportunity to suck the remaining years from him. He needs to escape…somehow. Mimi, ever crafty, counters Igby's rebelliousness with institutionalized academia as he bounces from posh East Coast prep schools, to a fascist military academy, finally landing in a leafy suburban drug camp. Igby's options are indeed dwindling.

Following a hotel spending spree made possible by the fraudulent use of his mother's credit card, Mimi hands Igby off to his godfather, D.H. BANES (Jeff Goldblum), until the next school semester. A pompous tycoon with deep pockets, D.H. sees the world as part of his 'plan,' a philosophy to which he credits his success. With pleasure, he takes Igby under his wing, bringing the lad to New York City for some "guidance."

Manhattan dreams initially fade for Igby as he finds himself on the low end of a construction crew. But hope is renewed when, while renovating a loft/dance studio space, Igby is introduced to the sultry RACHEL (Amanda Peet), the loft's fresh occupant. A dancer/choreographer, Rachel also happens to be D.H.'s mistress, offering a sexual respite from his frequently inebriated wife. The wonderful world of D.H.'s empire expands out to the Hamptons, where Igby first meets SOOKIE SAPPERSTEIN (Claire Danes), an earnest Bennington undergrad/existentialist who shares Igby's outsider status but initially rebuffs him.

Nonetheless, with life suddenly full of interesting and delicious possibility, who needs school? Who needs family…especially Oliver? Not Igby. He goes on the lam in New York and succeeds for awhile in falling off his family radar. After brokering a clandestine arrangement to live in Rachel's loft, Igby begins to enjoy all the delights that Manhattan has to offer-most notably Sookie-whom he encounters by chance on the street where he is attempting to pawn his Tiffany brushes for some fast cash. A mere three years older, Sookie ultimately offers the precocious Igby two critical things: first love, and the realization that maybe he's not all alone in the world.

However, Igby soon discovers life's one absolute: you can never permanently escape your family. Oliver oozes into his life, with orders of retrieval, as his family needs Igby-one last time. Igby will soon understand that painful dark truths cannot lie dormant forever, despite best efforts to bury them. Only by confronting the complexity of his past can Igby face his future unencumbered-a future bright with promise, hope, and delicious possibility. -- © 2001 MGM/UA [More]

Starring: Kieran Culkin, Claire Danes, Susan Sarandon, Bill Pullman

Starring: Kieran Culkin, Claire Danes, Susan Sarandon, Bill Pullman, Ryan Phillippe, Jeff Goldblum, Amanda Peet, Jared Harris

Director: Burr Steers

Director: Burr Steers
Screenwriter: Burr Steers
Producer: Marco Weber, Lisa Tornell
Studio: MGM/UA

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