Being Charlie | Film review - A rehab drama inspired by family pain

Being Charlie Nick Robinson Devon Bostick

Rehab story.

A wayward 18-year-old (Nick Robinson) whose emotionally distant politician father (Cary Elwes) is running for governor of California struggles with drug addiction in Being Charlie, a rehab drama inspired by the family experiences of Spinal Tap director Rob Reiner and his son, the film’s co-screenwriter, Nick Reiner.

Despite its semi-autobiographical origins, the movie doesn’t steer clear of cliché. All too predictably, it gives the hero a firm-but-fair mentor (played by rapper Common), an enabling buddy (Devon Bostick) and an all-too conventional fellow-addict love interest (Homeland’s Morgan Saylor) as he falls on and off the wagon. Besides, Robinson’s protagonist is such a glib smart-ass that he tries the patience of everyone who encounters him, including the viewer.

Certificate 15. Runtime 97 mins. Director Rob Reiner

Being Charlie debuts on Sky Cinema Premiere on 16 January. Available on DVD & Digital from Cockerel Entertainment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SDAKgyqKNI

A film critic for over 25 years, Jason admits the job can occasionally be glamorous – sitting on a film festival jury in Portugal; hanging out with Baz Luhrmann at the Chateau Marmont; chatting with Sigourney Weaver about The Archers – but he mostly spends his time in darkened rooms watching films. He’s also written theatre and opera reviews, two guide books on Rome, and competed in a race for Yachting World, whose great wheeze it was to send a seasick film critic to write about his time on the ocean waves. But Jason is happiest on dry land with a classic screwball comedy or Hitchcock thriller.