"Igby Goes Down" is a film that goes neither down, up, left, right or in any direction. Starstudded and overflowing with spellbinding acting and compelling drama, this movie is so faithful to the concept of real-life filmmaking, that it meanders aimlessly away from any comfortable story structure.
"Igby Goes Down" tells the dark, somber and yet incisive coming-of-age tale about a young man's quest versus the world. Set in the oppressive and repressive world of East Coast "old money" families, the picture portrays Igby Slocumb (Kieran Culkin), a rebellious, sardonic, and frustrated 17-year-old, in his struggle for sanity in a story reminiscent of classic coming-of-age tales like "Catcher in the Rye."
Igby is surrounded and overwhelmed by the insanity of his family: an estranged and schizophrenic father, Jason (Bill Pullman), a distant, aggressive, demanding, self-absorbed, pill-popping mother in Mimi (Susan Sarandon) and an estimable college student, young Republican and conniving shark of a brother named Oliver (Ryan Phillipe). Dying to be free from his family and yet another corrective school, Igby escapes and runs amok in the streets of New York with a pilfered credit card and a key to the apartment of his disgustingly rich, slick and yet slimy godfather, D.H. (Jeff Goldblum).
Igby dives into a life he imagines will free him from his family, only to be pulled closer than ever before. Amidst a cast of intriguing characters -- D.H.'s choreographer and mistress, Rachel (Amanda Peet) and the disinterested and yet vivacious Sookie Sapperstein (Claire Danes) -- Igby trudges through his life's sometimes comic, sometimes tragic adventures. All in all, Igby is in a desperate pursuit to make something of his life without "going down" like the rest of his family.
"Igby Goes Down" embraces some of the finest acting this year. Packed with stars and memorable faces, each actor captures the miseries and aspirations of his or her individual character's lives with memorable brilliance. Yet what is most striking about the film is the ensemble performance of the actors and the story they tell together.
And therein lies the problem: the story. At a glance, there appears to be no story. "Igby Goes Down" has a plot that meanders aimlessly with no set course and no progressive motion. The film is so obsessed with its subject -- real-life drama -- that the story wanders around aimlessly, seemingly without any inherent direction -- as in real life. The film does has a very interesting story, but its stream-of-consciousness style and complete lack of progressive plot and linear motion leaves the viewer affected rather than entertained.
The moviegoing experience is entirely dependent on one's frame of mind. The Hollywood studio system has imbued the American movie culture with certain set story structures: a three-act story, a linear plot and a hero triumphing over a villain, saving the world and getting the girl all in one fell swoop. "Igby Goes Down" is an independent film and thus does not adhere to Hollywood story conventions. This picture simply tries to tell its story for its own sake.
This film contains neither gripping special effects northe wondrous battles of good and evil -- this is simply a film about a 17-year-old-boy struggling with his dysfunctional background and trying desperately to grow up and, most of all, to cope with this crazy world. Despite the lack of screenwriting skill, "Igby Goes Down" is an intriguing independent film in its own right, comprising an array of fine performances and reminding us of the sweet sadness of life.
