The Chumscrubber

2005 dark comedy

Rating: 11/20

Plot: After a high school kid's best friend hangs himself, some kids demand to help them find his stash of prescription drugs.

There were elements that I liked in this Arie Posin film that seems to want to be the next Heathers or Donnie Darko, but it's hopelessly uneven. It's another of those suburban satires, the kind of movie that makes you think all directors who lived in the 1970s and 80s had terrible experiences in suburbia. It's odd to watch a movie that loses its steam without really ever developing much steam. The main character is too mopey to spend over and 1 1/2 hours with, and a lot of other big-name actors--Ralph Fiennes, William Fichtner, Glenn Close--seem a little out of place, like they stumbled into the wrong movie.

The biggest problem is with the target of the satire. If you're going to pick such an easy target, it's got to be done extremely well or give a unique perspective. This has a few moments and an interesting message about parents in this sort of environment with narcissistic adults addicted to pills and therapy, but it never really gels and never really gets all that interesting.

The revelation of what a "Chumscrubber" is actually made me angry.