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My New
Favorite Thing: MANIC (IFC Films)
By Carrie McLaren | Issue #22
I saw Manic
at the Pioneer Theater, a small space run by Two Boots, a local New York
pizza chain, and it threw me for a loop: how did a movie this good wind
up premiering at such a hole-in-the-wall?
The big name in this indie is Don Cheadle, whose presence serves largely
to remind you that Manic
is not a documentary. The real stars are the kids, whose performances
as patients in a private mental institution are eerily real. Lyle (played
masterfully by Joseph Gordon-Levitt of [cough] Third Rock from the
Sun) arrives at Northwood Mental Institution as an angry teen unwilling
to come to grips with his violent behavior. (Young Lyle was committed
for bashing in a kid's head with a baseball bat.) He rooms with the intensely
shy Kenny (Cody Lightning), falls for wallflower Tracey (Zooey Deschanel
of All the Real Girls), and befriends Chad (Michael Bacall), a
funny, doe-eyed dreamer with manic depression.
Without descending into false sentimentality or easy cynicism, Manic
portrays the world through the ideas of its underdogs, kids from affluent
families that have abused or neglected them. At the same time, the movie
relays the internal struggles of psychologist David Moore (Cheadle), who
blames himself when his kids miss the mark. Shaky camera work and scattered
violent outbursts make it hard to watch at times, but this demanding film
must be seen. You won't find it at Blockbuster, but Netflix has it, and
your more arts-oriented video stores should as well.
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