Being Flynn

We all have our vices and compulsions. Some people are able to live with them, while others are destroyed by them.

The father and son characters in Being Flynn fall somewhere in between. The relationship between Jonathan (Robert DeNiro) and his estranged son Nick (Paul Dano) might not be so bad if it weren’t for the personal demons that each must deal with.

This dark portrait of redemption is adapted from the acclaimed memoir by the real-life Nick Flynn called Another Bullshit Night in Suck City that might have been more emotionally engaging if it didn’t indulge in so much cheap sentimentality.

The Flynn family is torn apart by everything from mental illness, to drug abuse and alcoholism, to a simple lack of communication. Jonathan is an irascible, outspoken bigot and small-time con man who has always claimed to be working on the next great American novel.

Following an eviction from his Boston apartment, he calls Nick, who he hasn’t contacted in years, in a clumsy attempt at reconciliation. They part ways, with Nick later taking a job at the neighborhood homeless shelter, where the two cross paths again weeks later when Jonathan comes seeking a bed.

Wracked with guilt, Nick’s life begins a downward spiral as he considers whether to help his father or push him away for good.

At its core, Being Flynn is an intimate character study that examines the bonds between father and son, even when they are torn apart. The two characters are fascinating, with Jonathan as a man whose emotional wounds are mostly self-inflicted, and Nick as a young man living in the shadow of a father who he once idolized but now despises.

However, the earnest screenplay by director Paul Weitz (Little Fockers) is too heavy-handed — especially in its narration — and it too often resorts to a level of contrived showmanship that undermines the attempts at genuine poignancy. Likewise, the film’s portrait of homelessness feels more sanitized than gritty.

The central performances are strong, although Julianne Moore is wasted in a thankless role as a jaded single mother who shows up only in flashbacks.

Ultimately, Being Flynn plays it too safe. It’s funny at times and unsettling at others, but not as much of either as it should be.

Rated R, 102 minutes.