This Boy's Life (93)

3/22/97

I think this was Leonardo's first movie. He was fantastic. You can see a star being born. He plays the son of a single mom. They're always on the run from men who've turned abusive. They think nothing of leaving an apartment or even an automobile and just taking off on foot with only a few suitcases. They find themselves in Seattle. Mom gets a boyfriend who at first appears only geeky. The kind of guy who talks about the hell he raised as a youngster or how outdoorsy he is or who he beat up. In this role DeNiro is his usual self. I'm not sure that's a compliment. First of all, he's got this on again off again accent that appears to be the one the Frances McDormand did flawlessly in FARGO. When he gets angry and you can see the official DeNiro fire in his eyes, the accent goes out the window and he becomes his characters in GOODFELLAS or MEAN STREETS. I'm not sure the failure of this film is his fault. The story is supposed to be some sort of 'coming of age' tale, but it appeared much too redundant to me. The boy 'Jack' beats up and later becomes friends with the local 'light in the loafers' kid. This offbeat friendship may be the only unique thing about the film. They both feel like they don't belong in tiny Concrete, Washington. DiCaprio was mesmerizing from beginning to end.
Robert De Niro Ellen Barkin Leonardo DiCaprio Jonah Blechman Eliza Dushku Chris Cooper Carla Gugino Zachary Ansley Tracey Ellis Kathy Kinney Cinematography by David Watkin Directed by Michael Caton-Jones
Ebert ***^ Maltin ***^
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