Review of Less Than Zero

Less Than Zero is a 1987 drama loosely based on a novel by Bret Easton Ellis. The movie centers around three wealthy friends, Clay, Blair, and Julian, who are searching to find their place in the world. Clay comes home to Los Angeles from college for Christmas where he must confront his troubled relationships with his ex-girlfriend, Blair and best friend, Julian. Julian is on a downward spiral due to cocaine addiction, and he's heavily in debt to his drug dealer, Rip. Blair and Clay's co-dependent attempts to help Julian enables him to continue abusing drugs. Julian's father tries the tough love approach cutting him off financially and kicking him out of the house.

Glamorous cocaine parties are juxtaposed against the darker, destructive side of addiction including detoxification demonstrating both the allure and the downside of drugs. Young women in cocktail dresses laugh about their cocaine induced nosebleeds while Julian is in a hotel performing sexual acts to pay off his drug debt. Clay and Blair attempt to rescue Julian from himself and his demons throughout the movie.

Robert Downey Jr. plays Julian, the ugly face of addiction, so well it's frightening to watch. Jami Gertz's performance as a girl who is both self-centered and protective of her friends is convincing. She manages to create a character who is forgivable if not always likeable. Andrew McCarthy portrays Clay, the long suffering, naïve, intelligent friend who is loyal to a fault. Somehow in his hands, the character's actions make sense even when they shouldn't. James Spader's performance as Rip stands out by creating intrigue and hatred at the same time.

Less Than Zero feels like watching someone's private diary come to life. Even twenty-two years after its original release, Less Than Zero's vivid and unapologetic depiction of the pains of detoxification and the heartache drug addiction manage to touch the heart and entertain at the same time.

Less Than Zero is available at www.amazon.com, www.netflix.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, www.deepdiscount.com, and www.blockbuster.com.