I'm a long-time, casual fan of Lili Taylor.  I first caught her in Mystic Pizza and over a number of years, I found that regardless of the quality of a particular movie, she always turns in a thought-provoking performance.

A Slipping-Down Life was no exception to my rule.  Lili stars as Evie Decker, an introverted young woman, who finds herself wandering aimlessly through life.  Her day to day routine doesn't change much.  She's passively stuck in a small-town, working at a local amusement park, selling hot dogs, and dressed in some Disney-esque type caricature while living with her widowed (also introverted) father (Tom Bower).

One evening, she's listening to her radio and she hears the ad-lib philosophical phrases of a local rock singer, Drumstrings Casey (Guy Pearce).  Although his randomness turns off everyone else (including the radio disc jockey), she finds herself seeking him out at the local bar. 

His voice - both singing and spoken - rattles her out of her isolated hidey-hole and inspires her to leave her seat, and proceed to the restroom.  There, she carves his last name (Casey) into her forehead.  It seems perfectly logical to Evie but to everyone else around her, they think she's gone crazy.

This impromptu moment turns into a publicity opportunity seized by the rock singer's manager (John Hawkes).  He arranges for pictures with Drumstrings and Evie and an interview on why she felt the need to take her love for the singer to this extreme.

It baffles even Drum (as he likes to be called) and thus starts their awkward, but eventual journey to couple-hood.

This movie is based upon the book written by Anne Tyler.  I've never read it however, my understanding is that the book and the movie veer apart dramatically, especially as it pertains to the character of Drumstrings Casey.

I found the screenplay (written and directed by Toni Kalem) worked well however, the ending seemed to be rushed and tied up in a nice, neat bow.  As a Cinderella-spoon-fed-chick, I always want a happy ending, BUT, I felt like I needed more meat between the main conflict (that is, the demons that each character fought within themselves which were only masked by their introvertedness) and the eventual outcome.

Lili Taylor obviously, turns in another great performance of a quirky but totally identifiable character.  She said so much with her body language instead of the usual - here's my words - let me tell you ad nauseum what I'm thinking and feeling.

Guy Pearce (you know him from Memento) is unrecognizable (but in a good way).  After you get past his bad-boy, hot-lookin', rock-star demeanor, you realize that his character's pain runs deep and that verbalizing through music and random philosophical soundbites is his only real relief.  By the way, Guy does sing in the movie and he is absolutely awesome.  I am definitely thinking about getting the soundtrack.

The chemistry between Guy and Lili is absolutely believable.  Casual at first, and building in intensity as the storyline progresses.

At less than two hours in length, this indie movie is rate R (for language, including sexual references).  A good movie to rent.  Not a tear-jerker (in my opinion), not a chick-flik, just more of a character-driven film with some thought-provoking items and some pleasurable music moments.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age