While on the plane to Dublin this morning, I watched Beautiful Boy (2018). It follows the struggles of father-son duo Dave and Nic Sheff(played by Steve Carell and Timothy Chalamet, respectively), through the throes of Nic’s addiction to crystal meth among other drugs. I think I liked it so much because it seemed as if anyone could identify a struggle they are going through, with the lens of the movie. By this I mean that you could see the bad side of your struggle in Nic, and the good side of it in Dave. With Nic, you see the part that wants to escape reality, the part that feels the weight of the world on its shoulders. With Dave, you see the practical side, and the part that wants to get better. While I cumulatively labeled Dave as good and Nic as bad, I think a great part of the movie is that is has you sympathize with both characters, even when Dave cuts Nic off, and even when Nic steals his little brother’s $8 for drugs. The script is amazing; it perfectly tugs at your emotions, yet remains realistic. Additionally, the way the film subtly interweaves flashbacks detailing Dave and Nic’s relationship is beautifully done.
Besides the obvious emotional appeal, the movie also ended with a striking statistic: the leading cause of death for people under 50 is drug overdose. Given the Opioid Epidemic in the US, and other drug-related issues, I think this movie also has a great strength in that it doesn’t demonize Nic, as the addict. Yes, it shows his struggles, any of which aren’t pretty, but it does end with him being 8 years sober, and acknowledging that it is a day to day struggle. Hopefully this can change the consensus that drug addicts are criminals to one of a more helpful light. By treating addiction as a public health issue instead of a criminal issue, a real change could be made that would positively impact the world.
An Update:
I’m coming back to this post now, a couple days after I wrote it, because today I ran into two other people who had watched Beautiful Boy on their way over to Dublin as well(they were both from the US, one from Dallas and one from Palos Verdes). They both agreed that the movie was utterly sad, but they disagreed in its overall effect. The girl from Dallas just found it sad; even though the audience finds out that Nic had been clean for 8 years, she says the scars from his whole ordeal will never leave them, and therefore there is no happy ending. Alternatively, the girl from Palos Verdes argued that, while not the happiest of stories, it was overall one of endurance and ultimately was happy. She says that despite the damages that occurred, in the end the father-son relationship was maintained, so therefore it was a happy ending.
I agree with both of them. But I don’t think a story needs to be all good or all bad. What makes a great story is that it makes you see something(in this case, drug addiction), from another perspective(in this case, not one of malice, or criminal intent).