Beautiful Boy (2010) Film 41/50

I didn't love this movie. But I also didn't hate it. I simply felt like a voyeur, nosing my way into the private and personal grief of these mourning parents.

This film reminded me of Rabbit Hole. But with a school shooting instead of a car accident. And instead of dealing solely with the loss of their son, the parents find themselves burdened by the facts surrounding their son's death: he was the shooter responsible for the deaths of several faculty and students.

I won't go into great detail with this review. Not because I don't want to "spoil" anything for you, but rather because I felt no emotional connection with the main characters or the plot. If anything, I just wanted to give these two their privacy. I would have turned the movie off, but I'm a fan of Michael Sheen and didn't want to give up on his performance.

That being said, my favorite performance in the film belongs to Meat Loaf. How often does one get to say that?  He has a very small role, but his character was the most impressive. Much like the viewer, his character has no personal ties with the shooter or the victims. Yet, in the two or three scenes he stars in, Meat Loaf steals the show. At first, he is furiously ranting about Sammy (the shooter), unaware that Sammy's father is standing before him looking to rent a motel room. Later, we learn that he protected the parents from reporters as they hid out. It's one of the most touching moments the film has to offer.

Unfortunately, those two scenes aren't really enough to recommend this film to others. Sorry Meat Loaf. You were great. The rest was despair.