After a Few Major Life Changes, a Young Man Must Find His Way

Pete Davidson and Bill Burr in "The King of Staten Island"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

Over the course of his career, Judd Apatow has written, produced, and directed movies that focus on relatable, everyday situations, with a little bit of Hollywood fluff in the mix, whether it be dealing with relationships, surprise pregnancies, parenthood, growing up, and even mortality.  Despite the usual faults with his movies, Apatow has made us laugh, cringe, and reflect on the many memorable moments of life, whether they be significant or not.

Apatow manages to find another angle from which to analyze life with his comedy-drama, “The King of Staten Island.”  Serving as a semi-autobiographical look at the life of “Saturday Night Live” comic Pete Davidson, this movie proves to be as funny as it is surprisingly hard-hitting, and it may even be one of Apatow’s best.

Scott Carlin (Davidson) is a 24-year-old high-school dropout who lives at home with his mom, Margie (Marisa Tomei), and his sister, Claire (Maude Apatow).  After Claire leaves for college, Scott’s mom begins dating Ray Bishop (Bill Burr), who is a firefighter, like Scott’s deceased father.  In the middle of all of this, Scott will try to figure out a way of how to get his life on track, no matter how difficult it might be.

While Davidson has offered plenty of laughs during his time so far on “SNL” (he’s been a cast member since the 2014-2015 season), this is a performance that provides us with a much deeper understanding of who he is.  He manages to be his reliably humorous self throughout the movie, but it’s the moments that are grounded in his emotional, personal experiences that help show the range of his talents.  He’s able to make us laugh one minute and then feel sympathy for him in the next, showing how Davidson’s character can use wit to cope with the stressful situations that Scott faces.  Davidson allows us to witness an individual who is trying to keep himself together and find his path in life, bringing us a character who isn’t anything less than heartbreakingly real.

There are memorable supporting performances from Marisa Tomei, Maude Apatow, Bel Powley as Scott’s girlfriend, Kelsey, and Steve Buscemi as one of Ray’s fellow firefighters, Papa, but the standout is Burr.  His first scene is one of the film’s best, and from there, you can be sure that Burr is going to be a great addition to the movie.  In the first half of the movie, Burr does well in making you laugh with many hilarious lines, and then annoy you, just like he does with Scott as he tries to connect with him in such a way that is comical, but with a touch of hostility and jerkiness.  But, as Burr’s character begins to help Scott find his footing in life, Burr does well in showing Ray’s fatherly side as he gives Scott the support that he needs.  While they have terrific chemistry throughout, it becomes even stronger in the second half as Scott and Ray begin to open up with each other and change their lives for the better.

The screenplay by Apatow, Davidson, and David Sirus occasionally suffers from the same issue that we see in other Apatow films, which is an excessive length (the movie runs at 136 minutes), and this causes some scenes to either go on longer than they should, or seem superfluous altogether.  The scenes where this is felt in particular are those with Scott and his stoner friends, and this is where the movie feels the most like a typical Apatow film, with the main character and his friends just hanging out and talking.  While the first of these scenes is fine with helping to set up Scott’s character, the rest of them aren’t that necessary.

However, that problem is mostly confined to the first half of the film, and it’s the second half where the movie finds its flow.  As Scott and Ray begin to understand each other, we have a relationship that’s built organically and evokes as much emotion out of it as it can.  This is material of which we haven’t really seen in an Apatow film, making it a fine addition to the coming-of-age genre.  Between Scott and Ray learning to better themselves, seeing the bond that Scott forges with Ray and the other firefighters, and Scott learning more about his father, the strength of the film’s second half is enough to make up for the lulls that appear in the earlier half.

Just as he did with his 2009 movie, “Funny People,” Apatow shows a skill in balancing both drama and wit.  While there is humor throughout the character interactions, Apatow is able to mix in the underlying sense of the characters’ hardships when the movie calls for it.  “The King of Staten Island” is probably one of Apatow’s most grounded films, bringing us unto Davidson’s past and providing an effective view of someone dealing with the long-term effects of a loss while also trying to establish a direction to take in life.  Once the movie comes to an end, you’ll be glad to have been given a chance to grow up with Scott.

Grade: B+