Lonesome Jim (2005)

User Rating:
6.7/10 3,655 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 11% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Steve Buscemi
Writer:
James C. Strouse (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for Lonesome Jim on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
16 November 2005 (France) more
Genre:
Comedy | Drama more
Tagline:
Change your outlook. Change your life.
Plot:
Failing to make it on his own, 27-year-old Jim moves back in with his parents and deals with crippling family obligations. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Indiana | Nurse | Coma | Factory | Ladder Factory
more
Awards:
2 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(8 articles)
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User Comments:
Lonesome train whistle sounding in rural rustbelt more
Cast
(Complete credited cast)

Casey Affleck ... Jim

Kevin Corrigan ... Tim

Mary Kay Place ... Sally

Seymour Cassel ... Don
Rachel Strouse ... Rachel
Sarah Strouse ... Sarah
Rick Duplissie ... Bar Patron

Liv Tyler ... Anika
Mark Boone Junior ... Evil

Jake La Botz ... Phillip

Jack Rovello ... Ben
Don Strouse ... Neighbor
Doug Liechty Caskey ... Doug the preacher
Pam Angell ... Stacy - Prostitute
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Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated R for language, some sexuality and drug content.
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
Argentina:91 min | USA:91 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital
Certification:
Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | USA:R | Australia:M | Hungary:14 | Finland:K-11 | Argentina:13
Filming Locations:
Cromwell, Indiana, USA more
Company:
InDigEnt (Independent Digital Entertainment) more
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
When the original studio financing the film backed off and InDigEnt, a New York-based, Mini-DV movie company, came on board, the budget was reduced from $3 million to $500,000. The shoot also became much shorter. It was 30 days originally. more
Quotes:
Jim: Mom! You're home!
Sally: Yep.
Jim: How?
Sally: Something called bail. One of the girls in prison told me about it. Apparently your father never realized it was an option.
more
Movie Connections:
References Henry Fool (1997) more
Soundtrack:
Chase Him more
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User Comments
(Comment on this title)
8 out of 9 people found the following comment useful:-
Lonesome train whistle sounding in rural rustbelt, 26 September 2006
9/10
Author: correcamino from Potomac River

You can object to the choice to make this film about a so-called depressive. You can object that Jim doesn't just snap out of it. But of all the things you can say about Lonesome Jim, you can't say it is badly made.

This film is like a meditation: it totally clears the mind of everything else and allows you to focus on what is there in front of you.

The grainy film did not strike me as low quality or cheap. It made the film like watching home movies; there is nothing glamorous about this scene. It was totally in keeping with the theme of muted emotion. The graininess sometimes slows things down so much that the characters appear to be talking through the haze of their dull surroundings, and they are the liveliest things about the situation. It almost transforms film into a cartoon drama by the younger sibling.

Is the main character Jim (Casey Affleck) suffering from depression? Well, alright. But that assessment papers over the interesting sources of the emotion stifling: the relationship between son and parents, and how he has subverted his personality with them; and the relationship he has with the rest of his hometown.

The whole thing is so real – we especially digest meaning during Jim's driving scenes, inevitably at twilight when the post industrial fading rural landscape is at its most evocative, stirring feelings of profound longing and sadness.

(There must be a retrospective of Sensitive Boy flicks somewhere. To my recollection, Ordinary People could be the first in the series, but among the others, and I'm sure there are many, many more than I can think of here, are You Can Count on Me, and Imaginary Heroes. I've also heard that Garden State could be slotted in there, but I haven't seen it.)

This is a brilliant film.

So why not give it 10 out of 10? Because we do not know yet if it will stand the test of time. Already Ordinary People does not pack the same punch as did 20 odd years ago. Also, these films have a relatively small theme. So though while intense and delicate in emotional depiction, their reach is rather narrow and might not possess any universal themes. They are particularly US-centric. Which is fine, but it precludes them from greatness.