Critic Reviews
64
Metascore
Generally Favorable
positive
13(68%)
mixed
5(26%)
negative
1(5%)
Showing 19 Critic Reviews
88
Lymelife, set amid marital decay and teen frustration, isn't quite the "American Beauty" of the 516 area code, but it'll do.
88
Lymelife doesn't have the sheer power of "The Ice Storm," but it's not just another recycling of suburban angst. By allowing their characters complexity, the Martinis spill open those tiny model homes as thoroughly as a dropped Monopoly game.
80
Intense perfs by Rory Culkin and Alec Baldwin are standouts in a movie that brims with vivid supporting turns.
75
Even when the drama gets overcooked, Lymelife sends off sparks.
75
It's a family drama that treads on well-worn middle-class territory but is redeemed by the complexity of the characters and the intriguing ambiguity of their actions.
75
A charming if unoriginal coming-of-age story.
70
A period suburban rites-of-passage story with a pitch-perfect cast.
70
Despite such floundering, Lymelife keeps you hooked, mostly through Mr. Hutton, Mr. Baldwin and Kieran Culkin as Scott's older brother, Jimmy.
70
Lymelife offers charm and humor through its young central characters and pathos through its remarkable supporting cast, without pulling punches on its overall atmosphere of autumnal darkness and anomie.
70
Scott's coming-of-age bumblings form the piece's narrative rhythm. But the most affecting moments come from Mickey's midlife machinations: Baldwin, who also produced the film, has his best role since "The Cooler."
