thoughtcrumbs

Igby Goes Down is Catcher in the Rye without the smarmy pretention. Yes, New Yorkers are phony, but Igby doesn't bore the audience repeating that opinion. Instead, he galivants between parties in the Hamptons, dingy diners, and the apartment of a kept woman who never wears pants. We live vicariously in his world of pocketed Vicodin, boozy sex, performance artists' lofts, and misplaced military school hazing. Susan Sarandon and (the surprisingly un-neurotic) Jeff Goldblum pull off old money with depth, and Bill Pullman's cameo schitzophrenic is haunting. Claire Danes does her usual puckered-shaky-chin-in-lieu-of-real-dramatic-acting thing. An intelligent movie; Aaron Sorkin might've composed something equal on a good shroom trip in college. Nic Harcourt, of Sounds Eclectic fame, interweaves a thoughtful soundtrack, managing to include Coldplay without being hackneyed, even in a "I'm walking through the park and reevaluating my life choices" scene. Best movie I've seen since Amelie.