Beautiful Boy (2018)

Nic becomes addicted to meth while still a teen. After success in a rehabilitation facility, he's off to college and off the wagon as well. He gets clean. He seeks and uses drugs again. He gets a sponsor and celebrates sobriety milestones then he's back out there hoping to party. All the while, his father, mother and stepmother do their best to be there for him without enabling his behavior -- which means that they often don't know where he is nor if he's safe. 

I'm sure this is an accurate depiction of what it's like to have an addict in the family, but it was just so exhausting. The experience was less like a rollercoaster and more like driving a junker: there was never any question that a breakdown or crash was coming and every successful journey was just delaying the inevitable.

Two acting notes: Chalamet is extremely good while Carell is in over his head. Sometimes when he was yelling, I couldn't help but be reminded of Brick.

 

C+