Review of "Jeff Who Lives at Home"

Jeff Who Lives at Home chronicles the eventful day of the estranged Jeff, his troubled brother and his lonely mother. Jeff is a stoner, living at home and nearing his thirties. Like many in his situation, he is desperately trying to discover what his place is in the world: he overanalyzes wrong numbers and random happenings, interpreting them as signs from the universe. Eventually, we witness Jeff discover a purpose to his life - one that is part of the greater whole.

Jeff Who Lives at Home
Starring: Jason Segal, Ed Helms, Susan Sarandon
Directed by Jay & Mark Duplass
My Opinion: Eh.

As a whole, the film focuses less on Jeff and his life than I had expected. It should really be called: Jeff Who Lives at Home, His Brother Who Found Out His Emotionally Abandoned Wife is Having an Affair and His Mother Who is Really Very Lonely. Obviously, that wouldn't fit on the poster as well as the actual title does, but at least it would be much more telling of what the film is actually about. While the film begins with Jeff in his gloomy, dissipated status, the purpose that he pursues comes to light in an expectedly altruistic light.  The moral is a conventional, but a truthful one: we are all here for a greater purpose, for each other. Yes, this is a nice and tidy point, but because of it the film begins to lack focus.

Each thread in the story eventually rises and converges, but unlike Jeff's life, they seem to lack a deeper meaning. Furthermore, the film veers away from comedy and maintains a steady dramatic structure that is occasionally tinged by a laugh geared by a member of the talented triad cast. The bottom line is pretty clear. There needs to be more dark humor in this at times morose tale, otherwise it's just plain uncomfortable and boring. I found myself rather apathetic to the characters in the film. In addition to the reprehensible steel drums which cast an obnoxious light in the background throughout the entire film, there was something else that impeded Jeff from being entertaining. There was a lot of potential for this film, mostly due to the cast, but I found myself watching the credits roll with a sigh of relief.

All that being said, the film's opening shot which reveals Jeff speaking his thoughts into a tape recorder while sitting on the toilet is really very clever and a wonderful introduction. I only hope that the rest of the film kept the strange, dark humor that poignantly opened the film. Unfortunately, this welcoming tone vanished quickly, leaving me anxious for Jeff to find himself just so the film would end.