Floating

William Roth's overwrought coming-of-age tale constructs an increasingly combustible structure of conflict and tension. As simmering protagonist Van, who's caught between caring for his alcoholic and wheelchair-bound father (Will Lyman) and wanting to go to college, Norman Reedus taps into rage and tenderness while remaining sympathetic. The family were once prominent members of a quaint, New England lakefront community, but following a car accident, Van's mother abandoned the men to a ramshackle cottage and despair. Neither does Van's girlfriend, Julie (Sybil Temchin), offer much support. With no outlet for his anger, Van begins to run with a pair of free-spirited punks (Jonathan Quint and Josh Machette). Then he encounters Doug (Chad Lowe), who has the perfect family (in fact, they live in Van's old house) and is the big-time college swimmer that Van dreams of becoming. But all for Doug is not what it seems: he has a secret and, like Van, struggles against a self-interested, controlling father (Bruce Kenny). Strong acting and taut direction almost spark the kind of tragic romanticism that recalls James Dean, but in its floundering ending Floating can't keep its head above water.

-- Tom Meek