Synopsis
James White is a troubled twentysomething trying to stay afloat in a frenzied New York City. As he retreats further into a hedonistic lifestyle, his mother's battle with a serious illness faces a series of setbacks that force him to assume more responsibility. With the pressure on him mounting, James must find new reserves of strength or risk imploding completely.
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Cast
- Christopher AbbottJames White
- Cynthia NixonGail White
- Kid CudiNick
- Makenzie LeighJayne
- Ron LivingstonBen
- David CallElliot
- Scott CohenBarry White
- Jeanette DiloneIrene
- David HarrisJoe
- Sue Jean KimKaren
Recommendations
- 100
New York Magazine (Vulture)
James White looks like a simple film on its surface.... But despite the vérité-influenced stylization, writer-director Mond (whose own struggle with loss likely inspired some of this story) doesn’t seem too interested in realism or grit. - 100
RogerEbert.com
James White is a masterful examination of how our behavior and the excuses we make about our lives fall away under certain, life-changing conditions. - 91
IndieWire
Despite the cerebral formalism that pushes it forward, Mond has made a genuine tearjerker. - 91
The A.V. Club
So James White’s title character is an entitled, self-centered a--hole. But the movie about him is still a marvel: an honest, moving, and occasionally even funny portrait of what happens when a cripplingly immature young man gets hit with one reality check after another. - 90
The Hollywood Reporter
Mond's skill at working with actors is equal to his fully developed visual style and assured modulation of atmosphere and tone. This may be a small movie, but it's an impressively rigorous one without an ounce of flab. - 80
The Guardian
When Abbot and Nixon start their sparring, Mond’s film takes on a magnificently physical and tactile quality. - 80
Variety
Familiar in its general trajectory, but unusually raw and ragged in its emotional architecture, Mond’s fraught portrait of a mother and son in crisis sports a pair of knockout performances by Cynthia Nixon and “Girls” alumnus Christopher Abbott. - 75
The Playlist
Mond’s film doesn’t feature traditional structure or many familiar character beats of self-improvement, but as a visceral, in-the-moment portrait of struggle and suffering, it’s a striking first film.
