Jeff, Who Lives at Home

Following their 2010 mainstream breakthrough Cyrus, the Duplass brothers are back with Jeff, Who Lives at Home. A low-key charmer, Jeff, Who Lives at Home gently deals with notions of romance and destiny, boasting a cast of commanding Hollywood stalwarts. It’s a light picture and one that breaks little new ground, but there’s genuine wit and pathos to be found here and in Jason Segel it showcases possibly the warmest leading man contemporary comedy currently offers.

Jeff (Segel, The Muppets) is a slacker who spends his days pondering the meaning of life in his mother’s (Susan Sarandon, The Lovely Bones) basement. After being sent on an errand to purchase some glue, Jeff runs into his brother Pat (Ed Helms, The Hangover), a man currently enduring marital issues with his wife Linda (Judy Greer, The Descendants). Together Pat and Jeff uncover that Linda may be having an affair, the former hoping to win his spouse back, the latter convinced today will be the day he finds his place in the universe.

The capable and engaging cast are the principal reason the picture is a modest success, Segel, Helms, Sarandon and the underrated Greer coming together to infuse the picture with hilarity and emotional heft in equal parts. The Duplass brothers balance the family dynamic adequately, wrapping the picture up on a note of uplifting courage. Also one has to commend them for working the twist of M. Night Shymalan’s Signs into the mix as a major indicator of the picture’s moral thesis.

Jeff, Who Lives at Home is a soft, warm-hearted movie which packs enough cute charisma to be well worth a viewing.

Daniel Kelly