In Igby Goes Down, Igby Slocumb (Kieran Culkin) has flunked out of more colleges than his wealthy mother (Susan Sarandon) can find for him. How she wishes he were more like his preppy brother Oliver (Ryan Phillippe) who is mastering his university classes, and life, just fine. Igby is determined to figure out what life is all about, and college or advice from his mother is not part of his plan.

After his mother once again steps in to do damage control at his latest college, Igby steals her credit card and takes off on his own. A host of interesting people either lend Igby a hand, offer advice, or take advantage of him. D. H., his godfather and his mother’s good friend, always comes to the rescue. D.H. is played well by Jeff Goldblum, an actor noted for bringing amusing eccentricities of his own personality to his film characters. But instead of guiding Igby on a positive track, D. H. seems more interested in looking for his next affair. He deals with Igby by giving him a financial hand out.

Sadly, there are few redeemable characters in this story. Igby himself engages in an affair with D.H.’s latest gal (Amanda Peet) and then takes up with another street urchin, Sookie (Claire Danes). Sookie, he feels, just might be the one to help him escape the web of dysfunctional family trappings that have ensnared him for so long.

Igby’s father (Bill Pullman) has already checked out of reality and is in a mental home. And even when Igby and Oliver learn of their mother’s cancer and impending death, it does little to change their sentiment about their mother. Although viewers never see most of the animosity about "mom" in this movie, the set-up of the film handles the unfolding drama in a believable fashion.

As Igby starts to reach for that olive branch of normalcy, he discovers Sookie has taken up with Oliver, once again proving he has no family allies. Igby Goes Down tries to prove that, under the surface, things are often not as they appear – but the movie offers nothing outstanding about Igby’s coming-of-age journey.

And yet, I enjoyed the film for its performances. Although Sarandon’s role is short, she’s always a trip. Phillippe doesn’t have to stretch much as Oliver, and Danes’ role is interesting, but I think she’s unbelievable casting opposite Culkin. Pullman’s performance as a mental patient impressed me with its intensity.

Still, it’s Kieran Culkin I found most amazing to watch. Growing up in the Culkin clan under the shadow of his famous brother, Macaulay, probably wasn’t easy for a young man who wanted to perform as well. However, since his debut in The Mighty with Sharon Stone, Kieran has won over audiences and filmmakers with his fine work in films like The Cider House Rules and this year’s The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys.

Igby Goes Down may not win any Oscar nominations, but I rate it as much better than most films now playing at the multiplexes.

(Released by United Artists and rated "R" for language, sexuality, and drug content.)