Norman | Review

Coming at the tale end of a series of noteworthy teenage tribulation films (Cyrus, Win Win, and Terri), Norman has an unfair disadvantage as far as timing goes, but for the most part the film safely falls in line with its winning predecessors. Jonathan Segal’s sophomore directorial attempt works off of Talton Wingate’s debut screenplay, making for a solid tragi-dramedy that sees its young lead dealing with the recent passing of his mother and the impending death of his cancer infected father.

Dan Byrd, who has spent most of his career in television, stars as Norman, a high school outsider, known mostly for his dark, witty intellect and awkward demeanor. His father, played by a soulfully empathetic Richard Jenkins, is physically crumbling under the weight of his ‘three months to live’ cancer diagnosis, but managing to maintain his dignity with the help of his caring son. To deal with his depression, Norman routinely harms himself everyday at 3:36 on the dot. His latest act, trying out for drama club by auditioning with a true confession that he tried to kill himself three days prior, only weirds out his peers rather than making them seriously worried. Despite his anti-social behavior, he attracts the attention of new classmate, Emily (Emily VanCamp). Though his budding relationship is growing, he realizes that his father’s peril, if applied to himself, could change everyone’s view of him. So, in the heat of confrontation, Norman tells his friend that he has cancer and only has three months to live, and with the quickness of a whisper, his entire class (including girlfriend) is convinced he’s dying, that is, until the truth inevitably comes out.

Dealing with the general confusion of being a teen is rough, but having to face the death of both parents on top of that has to be nothing short of world crushing. Norman’s irrational coping strategy steers everyone to off-basedly acknowledge his strife and express their sympathy, but he eventually finds himself even lonely than he was previously. As a character, Byrd melds Norman into a generally pensive and highly sarcastic teen who’s love of family and wistful inelegance in the pursuit of romance give him an air of authenticity. Byrd seems to strangely embody a young Peter Sarsgaard in his understated portrayal. Only in fleeting moments of out of character hyper action does Norman seem a bit unreal.

The film is set to the always playful, yet achingly beautiful swelling strings of Andrew Bird. His string arrangements and ingeniously slick whistling line the film, often enhancing the mood and emotional intensity. Unfortunately, it seems the filmmakers wanted to play up the fact that Mr. Bird’s tunes are featured in the film, so often it seems that they are just a bit too high in the mix, regrettably taking over the scene.

Though at the lower level on the podium of recent teen dramas with weight that bares legitimacy, Norman still manages to balance dramedy with deathly serious subject matter to teary eyed effect. Segal’s film makes a strangely fitting companion piece to the recently released, and strikingly similar in feel, 50/50. It takes a while for Norman to show himself for what he really is, both to his peers and to the audience, but once his depths are exposed, Norman becomes a carefully plodding love story of empathy and self realization.

Rating 3 stars