An angsty teenager looking to find himself falls in love and deals with tremendous personal pain. Sound familiar? It should; that could be the basic log line to a multitude of indie coming-of-age dramedies. Norman, from director Jonathan Segal, doesn’t really break the mold of said formula, even installing a hipster-accessible soundtrack, courtesy of Andrew Bird, for added oomph.
Still, there are some truly moving and memorable performances that keep it afloat. Dan Byrd stars as the title character, a 16-year old who is not only reeling from the death of his mother six months before, but is also taking care of his father (Richard Jenkins), who’s slowly losing his battle with stomach cancer. Needless to say, all of this is getting to him, and he lashes out against himself (by putting himself into emotionally painful situations, like getting made fun of by the popular kids when he asks to play basketball with them) and at his best and only friend James (Billy Lush).
When James finally calls him out on his constant negativity, Norman lies and says that he has cancer. The news quickly makes its way around the school and Norman continues to keep up appearances by wearing a “cancer hat” and acting sickly. At the same time he meets new girl Emily (Emily VanCamp) and the two begin to fall for each other, all the while he questions whether she likes him for him or just because she feels bad because of his “illness”.
Norman boasts some powerful performances by some of the better under-the-radar actors around today. Byrd is effective, adding flesh and blood to a character that could have easily been drowned by the more ridiculous elements of the plot. He’s subtle, with a sense of dry humor and instantly relatable. This is by far the best work he’s done. Jenkins, of course, is also wonderful as Norman’s ailing father. The two have a great chemistry together that makes the third act all the more heartbreaking and effective.
The supporting cast also adds some much needed humor and warmth to the story. While VanCamp is essentially Manic Pixie Dream Girl-Lite, she’s too cute and kind not to fall in love with, despite some issues with the romance itself. That’s what she’s engineered to do but she definitely makes it work. Adam Goldberg also shows up as Norman’s English teacher Mr. Angelo who takes a vested interest in his pupil when the news of his cancer comes out. Goldberg’s natural charm makes the character’s brief time on screen worthwhile, most memorably in a touching scene near the climax of the film.
My issues with Norman, as you can see, have nothing to do with the cast; it has to do with the story itself. No matter how you try to spin it, this is not a movie that feels particularly fresh or innovative. We’ve seen this movie before and done better, although the “cancer as a coping mechanism” angle is interesting. A subplot in which Mr. Angelo asks Norman to make a video diary about his “cancer” also ends up going nowhere, with no payoff, coming off as something that – in its current neutered state – could’ve been cut from the movie and not missed. Norman’s best friend James also disappears after the first twenty minutes of the movie, subtracting another interesting dynamic from the narrative. Bird’s soundtrack ultimately adds nothing to the film; it’s the kind of acoustic background noise that we’ve come to expect from something like this.
There is definitely some good in Norman; Byrd and Jenkins give great and effective performances and there are scenes that are successful in manipulating your emotions (especially the third act, which I still can’t get out of my head). But despite the good, the overall blandness and cookie cutter feel of the movie ultimately undermines its positives. There is a market for a truly effective and profound coming-of-age story, something Norman strives for, but fails to be.
Norman hits limited theaters on Friday, October 21st.