THE ONLY LIVING BOY IN NEW YORK

This is a compelling, tightly made drama about a young man whose attempt to protect his fragile mother pulls him into his father’s affair. The direction, dialogue, and performances work together well, and the film moves briskly through its 88-minute running time.

The story takes honesty seriously by showing how hidden truths damage people and how confession can lead toward wisdom and family reconciliation. But it also involves illicit love affairs, sexual wrongdoing, crude dialogue, and strong foul language. The film’s uplifting ending does not erase the choices that lead there.

If you are an adult—or an older teenager with sound parental guidance—who can engage those concerns thoughtfully, this is WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY.

Thomas Webb has just left college and is still pining for Mimi, a friend who wants only a platonic relationship. After moving from his parents’ affluent Upper West Side world to Manhattan’s Lower East Side, Thomas befriends W.F. Gerald, an alcoholic writer who offers advice about love and life.

Then Thomas sees his father with a much younger woman. Protective of his mother, he begins following her, setting in motion a series of messy discoveries that will challenge everything he thinks he knows about his family and his new friend.

Four stars means this is an engaging, absorbing film with craft to match its story. The direction and dialogue are compelling, the performances are strong, and the film is sleekly paced at 88 minutes.

The relative newcomers in the roles of Thomas and Mimi hold their own against a talented veteran cast led by Jeff Bridges. The film’s plot twists build toward an uplifting ending, with touching moments of family reconciliation. Its serious moral concerns do not diminish the review’s positive judgment of the filmmaking.

The film presents a mixed worldview. It includes strong romantic and anti-law elements, but it also contains moral elements that lead its characters toward honesty and family reconciliation. It suggests that some modern redevelopment in New York City neighborhoods has caused the city to “lose its soul,” and it includes a brief reference to homosexuality.

At the center is the idea that hidden truth eventually has to be faced. People make damaging choices, conceal what they have done, and later move toward confession. The film’s moral vision is incomplete because it places illicit relationships and other bad decisions within an ultimately uplifting story, but it does recognize that truth can make people wiser and help repair a family.

Scripture likewise calls us away from falsehood and toward honest speech: “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor” (Ephesians 4:25).

This is a sleek, absorbing drama with compelling performances and an uplifting movement toward truth and family reconciliation. Its illicit affairs, strong language, and mixed moral vision make it unsuitable for children and young teens. For discerning adults who can engage those concerns, it is WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY. For other family viewing, see.