Manic (film)

Manic is a 2001 American drama film directed by Jordan Melamed and written by Michael Bacall and Blayne Weaver. It was shown at several film festivals in 2001 and 2002, including the Sundance Film Festival. The region 1 DVD was released January 20, 2004. This is also the first time Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel have worked together as each other's main interest in a film, the second being (500) Days of Summer.^[3]

Plot

After brutally beating another teen with a baseball bat during a baseball game, Lyle Jensen, an impulsive and aggressive teen, is admitted to the juvenile psychiatric ward of a hospital along with other troubled teens: Tracy, Chad, Michael, Kenny, and Sara. Lyle is placed in a room with Kenny, a reticent 13-year-old, and form somewhat of a sibling relationship. Lyle has problems adjusting to the confinements of the institution and it's Dr. David Monroe's job to get them to talk in group therapy sessions.

Lyle finds himself attracted to Tracy. She is reluctant to become close to him due to her low self-esteem and fear of him. Tracy has constant terrible nightmares. Lyle becomes suspicious about why she screams at night and later finds out she is a victim of rape. In their room, Kenny and Lyle begin a discussion about their fathers, at which point Kenny announces that his stepfather is going to visit him. After an uneasy visit, the audience finds out that the stepfather sexually molests him. Due to a confrontation between Dr. Monroe, Kenny, and his stepfather, Kenny is transferred to another unit of the institution. Lyle becomes upset when he hears of the sexual abuse. In an effort to comfort him, Tracy apologizes for the situation. This enrages Lyle that he pushes her against a wall. When she begins to cry Lyle kisses her which causes her to run away.

A group meeting takes place in which the patients and Dr. Monroe discuss about their worries and the situation with Kenny. Michael, a violent gangster, feels no remorse for Kenny and states that he received what he deserved. At this point, Lyle jumps up and attacks Michael, but the guards pull them apart. Dr. Monroe becomes upset at Lyle and begins throwing chairs around the room, demonstrating to Lyle that reacting out of anger accomplishes nothing. The two later have a conversation in which the doctor apologizes.

During his stay, Lyle had formed a friendship with Chad, who suffers from manic depressive disorder and agoraphobia. The two make plans to go to Amsterdam with the money from Chad's trust fund. Later, Chad and Sara have an argument over Van Gogh's painting "Wheat Field with Crows." Sara states that the painting represents freedom, while Chad states that the painting represents depression and confinement. Sara is soon released and departs from the psych ward, leaving Tracy heartbroken. When it comes close to Chad's eighteenth birthday, he backs out of the plan to go to Amsterdam stating that running off to another place will not change his life, however, he encourages Lyle to go ahead without him. The day before his release, Chad attacks one of the guards and cuts the guard's neck causing him to be removed from the ward. During the scuffle between Chad and the guard, the guard drops his keys, which Lyle takes without notice. That night, Lyle uses his key to get into Tracy's room. He apologizes and the two embrace and kiss.

The day of his escape, Lyle searches for Tracy. Unable to find her, he asks Michael of her whereabouts. Michael inquires if Lyle has raped Tracy yet since "she wants it." This enrages Lyle, that moments later he breaks into Michael's room and attacks him, leaving him lying bloody in a corner. When he leaves Michael's room, he sees Tracy and tells her that he was looking for her. She says nothing and does nothing as he unlocks the door of the institution and runs out the gate. Lyle leaves the institution thinking that it is no place for him since there is nothing wrong with him. He waits at the bus terminal and when it pulls up, there is a poster of Van Gogh's "Wheat Field with Crows" on the side of it. Seeing the painting, Lyle is reminded of the argument between Chad and Sara. Lyle does not board the bus and instead walks back to the institution.

Cast

• Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Lyle Jensen
• Zooey Deschanel as Tracy
• Michael Bacall as Chad
• Don Cheadle as Dr. David Monroe
• Cody Lightning as Kenny
• Elden Henson as Mike
• Sara Rivas as Sara

Music

The film features music by Thurston Moore, Aphex Twin, Deftones, Squarepusher, Broadcast, and Sleater-Kinney.

References

External links

• Manic at the Internet Movie Database
• Manic at Box Office Mojo
• Manic at Metacritic