Rating: 
Summary: More teen pap
Review: I'm wondering if the people here reviewing this movie saw the same film as I. I've never been in a movie theater where half the audience walked out, until "Igby Goes Down". I should have followed their example really...I can think of nothing to recommend this movie whatsoever. I love Claire Danes and Susan Sarandon, but even they couldn't hold my attention away from the fact that this movie isn't entertainment, it's not thought-provoking - it's just nothing! I thought "Vanilla Sky" was self-indulgent, but I'd watch that 100 times over before seeing this again. Don't get me wrong: I can deal with teen movies, and I'm a fan of "Catcher in the Rye," but this movie is the most pretentious [movie] imaginable. I didn't care about the story, and I certainly didn't care about the characters. I also don't care to see a poor little rich boy's "struggle." To those saying this is believable, I can only ask which world they live in! I want my money back!
Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant screenplay and performances, bummer movie
Review: I don't know, I love supreme things. This had it all. But, and it's a big butt, the movie was depressing and at the end, I have to say "why bother!"
Rating: 
Summary: Why some writers should not direct
Review: The acting in this movie is very good, particularly Susan Sarandon as the just barely holding it together mother, and excepting Ryan Phillippe, who plays Igby's Republican brother as an emotionally dead automaton, but without the quiet emotional resonance that Kieran Culkin manages to suggest for his character.
However, this seems to be a case where the writer should not also have been the director, because while the script had some good moments, it was not nearly as clever as it thought it was, but an innovative director might have made something of it. Instead, Burr takes cliches and stereotypes, and instead of playing with them, as you think at first he will, he seems to be entirely serious about them. For instance, are we really supposed to take seriously a romantic relationship between a 16ish boy and a college woman? (Particulary silly is the sex sceene, precipitated by the boy being beat up and the woman wiping the blood from his face. To make it worse, Burr makes the--thankfully brief--sex scene begin with a long, long sweep across the floor, pausing on each bit of the the discarded clothing. This camera sweep distracted me so much from the mood of the movie that I found myself consciously hoping that this was some sort of parody, that the end of the camera sweep would not find the two in bed, but of course it does.)
The movie comes across as the fantasy of a teenage boy who thinks he is more interesting and important than he is, which would be fine if the movie were commenting on that fantasy in some interesting way, but instead Burr seems to be participating in it.
Rating: 
Summary: Contemporary 'Catcher in the Rye'
Review: I saw this movie yesterday, and must say that this is a masterful tale of adolescent angst.
Kieran Culkin might well be Holden Cauldfield reincarnated. Claire Danes gives her best performance that I have seen, even better than 'Brokedown Palace.' The rest of the cast fit in very nicely with the story. Great Soundtrack! The Band's "The Weight" at the end was perfect. I left the theatre feeling optimistic. Check out the extra scenes on DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: Daring and different
Review: I loved this film. I do question the self-consciously shocking opening scene, in which Igby and his brother Oliver seem to be complicit in the suicide of their mother - of course, they are, but it turns out to be a different kind of complicity. These two "poor little rich boys" are under enormous pressure to perform in their upper crust New York world, but have been so badly parented that they can barely function as human beings. Oliver (Ryan Philippe) is icy, wears a mask, and seems to act as his mother's husband substitute, while Igby plays the "bad boy" role to the hilt in an effort to get some attention. As the film goes on, though, he starts to really understand his place in the world and care about other people, which is probably the most revolutionary thing he can do, given the icy, predatory world he's from. This film is really a sibling rivalry piece, I think - Oliver as the "golden" older brother is just as lost and tortured as Igby, but covers his sadness with a surface polish. (I think it's a great performance - the scene where he tells Clare Danes he's "numb" is really moving). Igby (Kieran Culkin), who at first appears to be the classic cynical brat, is actually strong and resilient, and in the end quite sweet. The two boys have such an intense love-hate relationship that there's an almost sexual tension between them. By the last scene, as the Igby character is toughening up, the Oliver character seems more vulnerable and lost. The film is a brittle, dark comedy, but has its heart in the right place...
Rating:
Summary: Incredible!!!
Review: I just got back from seeing this film at the theater, and I was just blown away. The acting was brilliant and the story flowed very well. The film is about a teen, Igby, who comes from a very disfunctional family. He does horribly in all the schools he is sent to, and he decides to live with his god father's mistress secretly while avoiding another military school. I don't want to give much away, so I'll just end here. I highly reccomend this film to anyone who can appreciate great acting and an overall great film. Go see this if it is playing in your area!
Rating:
Summary: Igby Goes Down
Review: Igby Goes Down is a splendid coming of age story that proves to be quietly moving and influencial. Kirean Culkin proves that the Culkin brothers can do alot more than just look cute as he plays a smart, independent 17 year old whose family values were torn early in his life when his unhinged father (Bill Pullman) and mother divorced, and all that followed was abuse, neglect, and drug use. Underneath its darkness, the film manages to find sorrow and pitty in the hearts of its audience. It never seems to sugar coat itself and turn into one of those sappy and unconvincingly sentimental dramas but remains poigniant and piercing. Denfinitely one of the year's very best films.
Rating:
Summary: Going Down...
Review: Igby, how low can he go? Does selling [narcotics] to his third grade
art teacher count? Played by the irresistible Kieran Culkin, Igby is
a 17 year old (almost 18) boy on the verge of self discovery in
many ways. Sex, [narcotics], and the occasional beat down is what
he'll find along the way. After being expelled from multiple schools,
and escaping military school, Igby decides to take control of his
life, and no one was going to stop him. Not his dying mother, or
his adulterous Godfather/father. As a boy, Igby witnessed the
destruction of his father's mental health, including a heart-wrenching
moment in a bathroom shower. But he remained strong willed, until
the assisted suicide of his own mother brought him to tears of
emotional comfort and distortion. Love is only how you perceive it,
whether it be from life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness, it can be
found in some shape, form, or way. I really liked this movie. But not because it was an independent movie
that makes you reestablish your own existence, but because I really
enjoyed the performances by Culkin and Danes, as well as the crafty
story-telling that was involved in this low-gloss film. Dark it is, funny,
no doubt, essential viewing? why not? Makes you wonder if love is
truly meant to be found. ... One thing I learned from Igby is that you shouldn't be
afraid of change. You should actually force change to come and take
command. ... Planning: I kept on thinking about this while watching the movie. Igby
really didn't have any plans, and the ones he did have would shatter in
front of him like his face to a fist. I don't have any direct plans in my
life right now. I do have a goal, but plans seem so awkward and sort
of obstructive. ... But Igby manages to keep it all together, through all the drama, all the
heart-ache, and all the sultry $100 bills given away as bribes by is
Godfather/father. Susan Surandon was brilliant as Mimi, and Bill
Pullman was surprisingly convincing as the schizoid-angst father, Jason.
Claire Danes wore nothing but tight-stretch jeans, so she was certainly
not an eye-sore. All in all, I was very very satisfied with this film. Go
see it for yourself, or catch it on video.
Rating:
Summary: Not Holden Caulfield
Review: Igby is a [similar character] Holden Caulfield. Just like Salinger's hero, Igby gets kicked out of prep school and begins a descent into the gritty neighborhoods of New York City. This is where the similarities stop, however, because Igby Goes Down is anything but a masterpiece. Instead, it's a rather sloppy and plot-less movie with flat characters who try too hard to be eccentric and original.
The title of the movie refers to the mental breakdown of Igby's father -- a breakdown that Igby has witnessed as a small child and which undoubtably haunts him. In this film, "Going Down," seems to be a type of feeling one gets when the world becomes too much. And for Igby, everything is too much, especially his cold mother (Susan Sarandon) and flat brother (Ryan Philipee) who are simply emotionless. The only person he can connect with is a girl named Sookie who he runs away to New York with.
I wanted very much to like this movie. But it was filled with rather spoiled teenagers who seem to be fighting about something that isn't really there. I wanted this movie to end very quickly.
Rating:
Summary: Dark Humor and Intelligence
Review: One of 2002's better films, "Igby Goes Down" presents a literate and entertaining look at today's preppie youth. Although the film touches on all of the painfully tired facets of this genre (drugs, sex, teen-angst), the intelligence and heart of this comedy propel it to the head of its class. Igby is a troublemaking high-schooler with an institutionalized father, a selfish and drug addled mother, and a straight-laced brother. He rebels, runs away, falls in love, takes up with a liberal crowd, and searches for his place in the world. He meets colorful characters, has unpleasant adventures, and eventually finds an inner peace. A top-notch cast perfectly delivers the film's dark humor. Susan Sarandon captures not only her character's selfish spirit, but also the emotional emptiness that drives her, and Jeff Goldblum gives one of his best performances as the cocky and morally corrupt stepfather who takes an interest in Igby. The big surprise is the witty and knowing performace of Kieran Culkin in the title role. Macaulay's brother proves a far more adept performer than his sibling, and captures Igby's intelligence, anger, and generosity of spirit, seemingly without effort. Unfortunately, the talentless Ryan Phillipe is completely miscast as the over-achieving brother. He looks the part, but the young actor rarely seems to understand what he's saying, and therefore can only present the outline of an educated WASP and not a fully realized character. But, at the same time, the idea that someone as inarticulate as Phillippe could even get an interview at Columbia may be the film's biggest joke.
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