Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
With John's social life at a standstill and his ex-wife about to get remarried, a down on his luck divorcée finally meets the woman of his dreams, only to discover she has another man in her life - her son. Before long, the two are locked in a battle of wits for the woman they both love-and it appears only one man can be left standing when it's over.
Cyrus is a low-key mumblecore dramedy that works largely on the strength of its performances — Jonah Hill's unsettling yet oddly sympathetic Cyrus and John C. Reilly's hangdog everyman carry an otherwise thin premise. The plot is modest and somewhat repetitive in its escalation, never fully exploiting the Oedipal tension it sets up. Cinematography is handheld and naturalistic in the mumblecore tradition but unremarkable and occasionally sloppy. The novelty lies in its tone — awkward, understated, and emotionally honest — which distinguishes it from broader comedies mining similar territory. The ending deflates rather than resolves, feeling abrupt and undercooked for the emotional groundwork laid.