Synopsis
A married couple on the verge of separation are leveled by the news their 18-year-old son committed a mass-shooting at his college, then took his own life.
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Cast
- Michael SheenBill Carroll
- Maria BelloKate Carroll
- Alan TudykEric
- Moon BloodgoodTrish
- Kyle GallnerSammy
- Meat LoafMotel Clerk
- Bruce FrenchHarry
Recommendations
- 91
The A.V. Club
Like its fellow crowd-depressor "Blue Valentine," Beautiful Boy offers the antithesis of escapism: a claustrophobic, punishingly intense, beautifully measured exploration of the depths of human despair. - 88
Observer
Too bleak and wrenching to recommend unconditionally. You need a strong constitution to watch it soberly, but it is a gripping experience that left me weak in the knees. - 75
IndieWire
Despite routinely overstating the scenario with rampant scenes of tantrums and sobs, the majority of Beautiful Boy is made bearable by its two solid performances. - 75
Rolling Stone
Blazing performance will burn in your memory. Same goes for the film. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
Directing from the nonjudgmental script he wrote with Michael Armbruster, Ku's assured, unadorned documentary style allows his leads ample breathing room to inhabit their devastated characters. - 70
Variety
Although it's very much a contemporary yarn, there's a distinctly '70s feel to much of Beautiful Boy. - 67
Entertainment Weekly
Michael Sheen and Maria Bello both have wrenching moments in this quiet, oblique drama. Yet the movie isn't really convincing. - 63
Slant Magazine
This complex emotional texture no doubt owes a lot to Bello's stunning performance, which works by screwing with the familiar conventions of reaction shots; she goes cold when we expect her to freak out and explodes when we expect her to be silent.
