Jeff, Who Lives at Home

Jason Seagal is pretty funny dude ( Forgetting Sarah Marsal , Five Year Engagement , huh I just realized his movies have really long names ) but this movie is more than just a comedy , it is almost a life lesson . Ed Helms is fine and Susan Sarandon is , as always , splendid .

A man who lives at home follows signs that bring him closer to his destiny.

Most of these characters are facing life/relationship problems, but Jason Segel brings a lovable, quirky dorkiness to a film that inevitably carries lots of heart.

The premise only works if you go along for the ride, and it doesn't hurt that the characters are likable - for the most part.

Part fun, part strange, it's a down-to-earth world that becomes large because of its themes and ideas. Check it out!

7.3/10

"Jeff, Who Lives at Home" is NOT a film for everyone. It is very indie in style and features mixed up characters who are difficult, at times, to like. It is far from the sort of thing you'd expect to see from Hollywood, that's for sure.

Jason Siegal stars as the title character. He's a 30 year-old loser--with no job and living in his mother's basement. He sits around smoking a bong and has little going for him other than, down deep, he is still a very nice person. Much of the film concerns him and his brother, Pat (Ed Helms) who is MUCH easier to dislike. Unlike the optimistic Jeff, Pat is caustic--critical and not particularly nice. Their mother (Susan Sarandon) is frustrated with her life...though she has a hard time recognizing this. By the end of the film, events have taken place that both bring them all together and get them all to reassess who they are.

As you can tell, this is certainly not a traditional plot. It's much more like a typical Duplass Brothers film--with realistic but highly flawed characters that you grow to like in spite of themselves. However, unlike one of their films, they apparently impressed someone with money, as this one has major stars and obviously cost much more to make. Not a brilliant film but there are many, many small moments that you'll appreciate. Also, it starts off VERY slow--stick with this one.

By the way, in a supporting part you'll probably recognize Steve Zissis from anther Duplass film, "The Do-Deca Decathlon".

Don't let the title scare you away, 'Jeff, Who lives At Home' is a deep character study about three unhappy people and the meaningless existences they each inhabit.

One such person is Pat (Ed Helms), a man stuck in a roller coaster of a relationship with his wife, Linda (Judy Greer). Pat has recently purchased any man's dream car, a brand new Porsche. Judy doesn't share in his delight for his new automobile, which only distances them even more. When Pat suspects Linda of having an affair, it leads him on a inept detective mysterious, where most of the films humor draws on.

Susan Sarandon plays Sharon, the mother of Pat. A widower, Sharon is very lonely and loans for someone to connect with. When a "secret admirer" begins sending her flirty messages, Sharon is delightfully surprised someone is still interested in her despite her age. It's up to Sharon to uncover this mystery person's identity.

The last chapter, the title character, is played by Jason Segal. By far the best part of the movie, Jeff is a slacker in his 30's with no real aim in life. After seeing the movie 'Signs' and having someone with the wrong number call him and ask for a Kevin, he believes it to be a sign. The rest of his arc delves into him following after all things tied to "Kevin," and the strange paths it takes him.

A common misconception I can see being falling into is that this will be a broad, raunchy comedy, like the ones Ed Helm and Jason Segal have headlined in their career. If you go into this film expecting that, you'll be disappointed. This is a thinking man's movie, with smart humor and likable characters sprinkled in. With your time.

Well, there are two ways to go about this movie. There's the way of a nice superficial 2 or 3 out of 10 and then you can actually try and understand it a bit. This was what I chose.

The movie is heartbreaking. It's kind of random and weird but if you go along and stick with it, you can see that this is a masterpiece. The problems it discusses are there more and more frequently the past few years. It's a movie of its time, and it touches all the sensitive issues.

It discusses about the alienation between family members as well as our inability to understand the different in all aspects of life, respect it and just nurture it. It also gets into the marital issues that drive so many couples apart. And although these seem a lot, and there are even more, it makes it. It gets you a small sample of everything, emotions flooding and leading you to maybe cry a bit but hopefully be a better person by the end of the movie.