'Every Day'review: Richard Levine fails only when it veers away from reality

Family drama about a Queens couple pulled apart by increasing responsibilities. WithLiev Schreiber,Helen Hunt,Brian Dennehy. Director:Richard Levine(1:33). R: Language, sexuality, drugs. At the Beekman.

It's the details that make Richard Levine's perceptive debut stand out: a burnt dinner, a demoralizing meeting at work, the stressful rush to school in the morning.

Alas, Levine -- formerly a writer and executive producer on"Nip/Tuck" -- is not yet confident enough to trust in those minor notes alone.

But he should be:"Every Day"is duly titled, and fails only when it trades recognizable realities for movie-ready fantasy.

Most adults will find something familiar in the daily frustrations faced by middle-class Queens residents Ned (Liev Schreiber) and Jeannie (Helen Hunt). He spends his time writing scripts for a demanding and ungrateful boss (Eddie Izzard) at a"Nip/Tuck"-like cable drama. She spends hers caring for a demanding and ungrateful father (Brian Dennehy) in their home.

Though the deep connection between Ned and Jeannie remains evident to us, the demands of work, illness and child care pile up so high neither spouse can see the other.

As their responsibilities become increasingly exhausting, each tries to find a life raft to cling to. Jeannie focuses on her sons, inquisitive preteen Ethan (Skyler Fortgang) and Jonah (Ezra Miller), a gay high school senior. Meanwhile, Ned gets drawn into the flirtations of a sexy co-worker (Carla Gugino) who's got her own complicated secrets.

Levine displays a sensitive directorial touch and draws warmly genuine performances from all his actors. But as with so many first-time filmmakers, he lacks the perspective to assess his own screenplay.

There are too many overwritten moments designed solely to make the movie more interesting -- when, in fact, they undercut the low-key relatability that serves as its strongest asset.

Izzard feels particularly out of place, as a blithely amoral producer who pushes Ned to include more incest and cannibalism in his scripts.

The film's carefully timed conclusion is also regrettable. Real life isn't choreographed for maximum impact, it's messy and unpredictable. At its best, so is"Every Day." 

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