James White

I watched this gem of an indie film, James White, the other night. From the plot summary and reading other critic reviews, I knew what I was getting into. It was going to be a heart wrenching, realistic portrayal of one young man's downward spiral in experiencing death and dying of his closest loved ones.

James White is a mid-twenty-something New Yorker with a taste for alcohol, drugs, and women. In the wake of his absent father's death, James is distraught and self-medicating to deal with his feelings of pain and anger. With no one to talk to, he is alone in figuring out how to navigate some challenging life situations. As a 30-year-old single male, I could relate to James White.

The core of this movie was between James White and his mother dying of cancer. The performances from the film's two leads are, and some scenes are just a punch in the gut. All James's mother wants is for his son to grow up and know he will be able to take care of himself. Like many young adults, growing up and finding yourself is not always that easy, and James White shows you how difficult it can b. I enjoyed the ending, but a lot of watchers will not.

Without giving away any more of this well written, directed and acted film, I will say watch it! If you are a fan of indie dramas, then you will thoroughly appreciate this one.

James White follows a twenty-something year old man who lives with his mother and, after the passing of his father, begins to struggle with the loss. During this time his mother's cancer returns and he tries to take care of her while balancing his own personal relationships and emotions.

To start off all the actors are great. Everyone was pretty genuine in their line delivery and even in the way they moved. They were all perfect, and their characters were great too. The main character and his girlfriend have great chemistry almost immediately, and everyone else is interesting and realistic, making it all the more shocking when something horrible happens. And that happens a lot. This movie can be very hard to watch at times, and not in a bad way. It's hard to watch because you can't stand to see such great characters go through such bad things, and when a movie can make you feel for the characters then it's definitely done something right

Surprisingly, this movie features a handful of lengthy shots. While some of them contain lots of dialogue, some of them also contain little to no dialogue and barely any movement. While it may not seem difficult or impressive, these actors had to stay in character sometimes for a full five minutes and just sit with each other and exchange a few words, maybe move around a little. And all of it was very natural. It's subtle things like this that make this movie stand out from other depressing family dramas.

At points, however, this movie could be a little slow. There isn't a lot of music, and while that isn't necessarily a bad thing it can make it difficult to keep your attention focused when the only thing emitting from the television is a soundless scene of someone barely moving. It generally didn't take away from the movie, it actually added to it a little, but it was still there. Also, the outcome of the movie was a little on the predictable side, but it didn't distract too much from how incredibly well-made the movie is.

Overall James White is just fantastic. It's filled with great characters, great actors, and some horribly good realism. While it can be a little slow and a little predictable, it doesn't take away from the movie enough to make it even remotely close to being a displeasure to watch. In the end I'd certainly recommend this movie.

I just did not expect... that. Great respect to Josh Mond. I think he took on an incredibly heavy film that managed to feel incredibly visceral in its portrayal. I could physically feel it, its last 30 minutes probably being the most uncomfortable film-watching experience of any film from 2015. What makes it work so well are the performances. There's such an innate authenticity and raw power to the cast's work here. I've liked Christopher Abbott from what I've seen him in, most notably Girls. I never would have thought he was capable of what he did here though. Definitely one of the best performances of last year. Not a fun film to watch at all, but holding that as a criticism would be a complete disservice to everything the film does well.

Who is Christopher Abbott and will someone give the boy an Oscar? The acting by Nixon and Abbott are so real it's like being in the room with them.

This movie is for anyone who has been in a caregiving position for a loved one, and knows the anger, frustration, pain, depression, anxiety and fear that comes with it. It's for anyone who has been on the receiving end, who has battled cancer or otherwise felt their death to be imminent. It's for anyone who has had friends or relatives described above.

FINAlLY - a realistic portrayal of a cancer battle and the struggles of those who love them deepest.

But overall, this is about overcoming life's greatest hardship - fear of losing the person you love more than anyone in the world. Oh - and the poor kid has no job, no help and has just lost his Dad, by the way. Yes, let's see how much more someone can take before they crack - although not all will crack. Some will go on and be okay. And nothing can hurt you after that kind of pain.

James White (Christopher Abbott) is caught in an endless cycle of self-destruction. He has just lost his father and fears losing his ailing mother (Cynthia Nixon) who he has been taking care of for years. He spends his days drinking, sleeping around and lashing out at others, doing anything to avoid confronting his grief and emotions, which he keeps under the surface, bubbling and waiting to burst. Life has been unfair to him, and this behaviour that manifested sabotages any chance of career or personal growth. He might be using his mother's condition as an excuse not to step out of his comfort zone and try harder in life, which is reasonable to some extent, but he can't seem to change. In his prime, he is jobless and taking his mother's couch as a bed.

This narratively loose drama doesn't offer anything particularly new in giving us a glimpse into the struggles, both internal and external, faced by James. There is not much closure or emotional reward to be given. This is summed up perfectly in one of the very few scenes in which we see James surrendering to his emotions, crying while repeatedly yelling "I don't know what to do".

The best aspect of the film is the acting. Nixon gives an authentic, heartbreaking performance that's understated. Abbott, on the other hand, is given a character that requires patience and sensitivity to sympathize with. James internalizes many complex emotions throughout the film and what goes on in his mind is not always clear to the audience. It's a tricky act to balance but Abbott pulls it off. Their mother-son relationship is the only thing that's certain in their lives and is the core of the film.

The film could have very well ended during its most powerful and stirring scene with James and his mother in the toilet. She can't get up, so they sit and talk about what their ideal life would be like and the future they had hope for. They feel at peace as both of them stay in this moment, still and smiling. This is when the bleak reality of the film truly sets in, as we see these people, both kind and full of dreams and desires, trapped in an unfortunate life.