FILM-FORWARD.COMReviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
THUMBSUCKER
Lou Pucci gives a solid performance as Justin Cobb, a 17-year-old who still sucks his thumb. The film does not delve into the
history behind his behavior. Instead, it centers on the present and the various directions of Justin's journey to maturity. Through
parental conversations and confrontations, sexual awakenings, hypnotic treatment, and prescription
medication, Justin finds himself navigating his way to greater self-assurance and acceptance, while slowly recognizing those
around him are similarly lost, insecure, or dependent.
His middle-aged mother, Audrey (Tilda Swinton), hopes to give her life some spark and new meaning by entering a
contest to win a date with television celebrity Matt Schramm (Benjamin Bratt). Justin's father, Mike (Vincent D'Onofrio), is a
former jock still smarting from a career-crippling knee injury. Rebecca (Kelli Garner), the apple of Justin's eye, reveals her
emotional handicap when it comes to true romance, while their debate team teacher, Mr. Geary (Vince Vaughn), is more anxious
about competing than are his students. And lastly, Justin's orthodontist (Keanu Reeves) probes the meaning of life by trying out the latest spiritual self-help techniques. Most all of the actors turn in fine performances. Unfortunately, Bratt is given too brief a scene with
too much thematic weight to make room for nuance, and Reeves' portrayal of the guru-orthodontist displays an appropriate
self-importance, but occasionally does so with a pointed eccentricity that raises the question why anyone would go to him in the
first place.
The theme of progressive self-awareness is played out in separate, disjointed chapters that could become their own full-length
films. These distinct story lines evolve abruptly and make an interesting story feel long and disproportionately rendered.
Nevertheless, Pucci upliftingly conveys a boy's coming of age. Similar to the more
cohesive Almost Famous, the characters in Thumbsucker help to support the
notion that self-realization, twists of circumstance, and falls from grace are not solely confined to
the realm of teenage angst. Max Rennix, actor & writer based in New York
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