Thumbsucker

Theatrical Release Date: 2005 09 16 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 043396114821

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

MPAA Rating: R   Contains:[Adult Situations, Adult Humor, Profanity, Sexual Situations, Drug Content, Alcohol Consumption]

Summary: A high-school senior finds that fate (and modern medicine) plays some interesting tricks with his personality in this dramatic comedy. Justin Conn (Lou Taylor Pucci) is a neurotic teenager who has a difficult time with his peers, especially Rebecca (Kelli Garner), a cute girl in his debate class with whom he is somewhat mutually infatuated. It isn't much better at home with his obnoxious younger brother Joel (Chase Offerle), his father, Mike (Vincent D'Onofrio), who is busy having a midlife crisis, and mother Audrey (Tilda Swinton), who's infatuated with one of her favorite TV actors (Benjamin Bratt). All this anxiety has to go somewhere, and Justin's manifestation of his troubles comes in the form of sucking his thumb, which makes him even more of an outcast. Dr. Perry Lyman (Keanu Reeves), an orthodontist who seems to double as a new age therapist, treats Justin with hypnosis; meanwhile, the school psychologist decides he has Attention Deficit Disorder, and treats him with medication. Suddenly, Justin stops sucking his thumb and becomes an outgoing overachiever, single-handedly taking his school debate team to the state championship. But Justin's relationshop with his debate coach, Mr. Geary (Vince Vaughn), becomes strained, and the boy tries to mold yet another new identity for himself. Thumbsucker was the first feature film from Mike Mills, who previously distinguished himself in commercials and music videos. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Comedy Drama

Awards: In Competition – Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize for Acting – Sundance Film Festival In Competition – Berlin International Film Festival Best Actor – Berlin International Film Festival Best First Feature – Independent Spirit Awards

Features: ccAudio commentary with writer/director Mike Mills
Conversation with director Mike Mills and novelist Walter Kirn
Behind-the-scenes documentary
Director's blog

Thumbsucker

Format: Digital Video Disc (DVD)

Release Date: 01/24/2006

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cinemascope

Audio: DD5.0 Dolby Digital 5.0, DS Dolby Surround (4.0)

Runtime: 96 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: French

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Thumbsucker
1. Start [2:26]
2. Searching for Distinction [2:58]
3. A Weighty Subconscious [2:14]
4. Aim Low to Achieve [2:01]
5. No Fun While Shopping [2:17]
6. Bravery, But No Trust [2:52]
7. Unclothed and Closed Off [5:25]
8. The Power of Hypnosis [3:38]
9. His Truth Is Nothing [3:02]
10. Change in a Bottle? [5:05]
11. Chemical Clarity [3:40]
12. A Newly Great Debator [3:30]
13. The Way It Goes [2:21]
14. Striving for Success [4:25]
15. "Let Me Be Happy 00:02:51
16. Applying by Lying [2:03]
17. New Philosophies for Life [2:19]
18. A Monster With a Dream [3:08]
19. How to Deal With It [3:25]
20. A New Drug [3:20]
21. Fantasy Addiction [4:56]
22. A Teenage Experiment [2:57]
23. Mother and Wife Pretender [3:53]
24. Saved ba Lonely Angel [4:50]
25. The "Normal" One Speaks [1:53]
26. Acceptance [:10]
27. "You're Already Gone" [2:22]
28. Life Without Answers [2:16]

Cammila Albertson

An almost perfectly balanced combination of real-life adolescent awkwardness and laugh-out-loud comedy, writer/director Mike Mills' Thumbsucker is an absolute success. Lou Taylor Pucci shines in his first leading role in a feature film with a performance that is nuanced, funny, and geared well for the camera. The young actor strikes a careful balance in his portrayal of Justin, so that while his screen presence is compelling, his struggles still remain raw. The grace with which Pucci mixes the emotion and humor in the script can't be praised enough, as this is what keeps the potentially cumbersome subject matter of a 17-year-old thumbsucker from becoming too awkward for audiences to handle. It's only too easy to see how an actor with less charisma would have left audiences too uncomfortable to enjoy the film, while a run-of-the-mill cutie-pie couldn't possibly have done justice to such understated emotional material. Pucci's ability to pull us in with his tenderness and charm is what enables us to put ourselves in Justin's shoes; his imperfect relationship with his parents comes off as both strange and universal, and while his embarrassing fixation always seems potentially humiliating, it also feels analogous to any other coping mechanism, so it's never outside the viewer's scope of relating. The supporting cast also does a stellar job of injecting that highly necessary laughter, sarcasm, and perspective. Tilda Swinton and Vincent D'Onofrio evoke flawed but forgivable characters with the masterful skill we've come to expect from them, while Keanu Reeves approaches his role with such surprisingly self-effacing grace, you almost want to pat him on the back. Vince Vaughn takes his own road less traveled and reminds us of the subtlety that first landed him on the map, as he avoids the frat-pack comic style we've come to expect from him and keeps his performance as the eccentric high-school debate coach reeled in despite numerous opportunities to jump over the top. The beauty with which these actors engage in the poignant and infuriating tangle of their characters' relationships owes to more than just chemistry but also to an organic realism in the script itself. The resulting interplay combines the passion of an opera, the delicacy of a ballet, and the rawness of an unflinching documentary, turning what could easily have been a cringingly uncomfortable satire into something both beautiful and real. ~ Cammila Albertson, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Patrick Chu  Actor 
Bob Yari  Executive Producer 
Ted Hope  Executive Producer 
Anne Carey  Executive Producer 
Cathy Schulman  Executive Producer 
Mike Mills  Director 
Mike Mills  Screenwriter 
Bob Stephenson  Producer 
Tim DeLaughter  Composer (Music Score) 
Lou Taylor Pucci  Actor 
Tilda Swinton  Actor 
Vince Vaughn  Actor 
Vincent D'Onofrio  Actor 
Keanu Reeves  Actor 
Benjamin Bratt  Actor 
Kelli Garner  Actor 
Chase Offerle  Actor 

Country: USA