Kurt Loder on Being Flynn
The story at the heart of Being Flynn—troubled young wannabe writer takes a job in a homeless shelter and one night comes face-to-face with the father he never knew—would seem hopelessly contrived if it weren't true. The movie's great achievement, writes Kurt Loder, is that it so effectively captures the poetic grace of the 2004 book on which it's based—Another Bullshit Night in Suck City: A Memoir, by Nick Flynn, who actually is an esteemed poet—without wobbling into mush. Equally welcome, Loder says, is the reminder it provides of what an electrifying actor Robert De Niro can be when given a smart script and a densely complex character to portray.
Hide Comments (0)
Editor's Note: As of February 29, 2024, commenting privileges on reason.com posts are limited to Reason Plus subscribers. Past commenters are grandfathered in for a temporary period. Subscribe here to preserve your ability to comment. Your Reason Plus subscription also gives you an ad-free version of reason.com, along with full access to the digital edition and archives of Reason magazine. We request that comments be civil and on-topic. We do not moderate or assume any responsibility for comments, which are owned by the readers who post them. Comments do not represent the views of reason.com or Reason Foundation. We reserve the right to delete any comment and ban commenters for any reason at any time. Comments may only be edited within 5 minutes of posting. Report abuses.
Please
to post commentsMute this user?
Ban this user?
Un-ban this user?
Nuke this user?
Un-nuke this user?
Flag this comment?
Un-flag this comment?