Beautiful Boy

Timothée Chalamet’s Best Actor Oscar nod was no fluke. A year after his tender turn in Call Me by Your Name, he amazes again in a challenging role. His teenager Nic Sheff is trapped in a debilitating drug addiction. The harder he falls, the more desperate his loving dad (Steve Carell) tries to help him. Ultimately, it’s up to Nic to save himself. Based on a pair of memoirs by father and son, this earnest drama rarely strays from a well-honed formula. The rock bottoms. The false hopes. (Note: When an addict swears to be clean an hour into a movie, a relapse is inevitable.) And strong performances aside, the flat narrative — that aimlessly swings between past and present — never reaches a well-earned emotional crescendo. Call it frustrating filmmaking.