Igby Goes Down is an odd little movie. A fusion of Catcher in the Rye and Mommie Dearest, it never seems quite sure if it wants to have art house chic or be a megaplex moneymaker. This isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy Igby Goes Down–I definitely found parts of the film to be quite worthwhile–but sadly, the movie lurches along in search of its own identity until the very last scene.

Igby Goes Down is the story of a young man, Igby (Kieran Culkin) who leaves boarding school and moves to New York to explore the Bohemian lifestyle he's been dreaming of, while simultaneous managing to escape his overbearing, neurotic mother (Susan Sarandon).

In a way, I found it refreshing to see big name actors like Sarandon and Jeff Goldblum taking on a script that obviously wasn’t meant to be anyone’s typical movie - the film begins and ends with scenes of Igby and his brother murdering their mother. But, it is also frustrating to see these two strong performances tacked on to add comedic elements to a movie that, at its heart, is as grim as any Beat Generation story about a lost and disillusioned soul search for happiness (or, at least, a warm climate).

Still, despite the film's overall inconsistency, it does have moments. Goldblum's adds a real element of fun to the film as Igby’s bombastic, rich and hypocritical uncle. Bill Pullman's brief appearance as Igby's mentally unbalanced father adds a warmth the rest of the movie lacks. And Igby's high-strung mother, as played by Sarandon, is certainly entertaining as she runs through the overbearing, prescription-addicted mother stereotype that the United States has so grown to love.

Two performances that surprisingly and noticeably lack real substance are those of Culkin and his on-screen brother, Jared Haris. Culkin spends the movie depending on his hair and clothing to play the part of the disaffected Gen Xer, while Haris plays his role as a Young Republican automaton with such purity that, in the movie's final moments, when he actually displa.html>spla.html>spla.html>spla.html>splays some familial feelings toward his brother, it seems forced.

Igby Goes Down is lumpy and inconsistent, but in the end, provides temporary enjoyment and satisfaction.