Sad sacks manage to charm in 'Lonesome Jim'

In "Bubble," Steven Soderbergh decided that digital video was the lens through which going-nowhere small-town life should be viewed. So it is with "Lonesome Jim," where director Steve Buscemi balances his more compassionate conception of Palookaville with a much cruder visual style. (The print shown at the Dobie's early screening looked as if it had been downloaded off the Internet — which, come to think of it, would have been more fitting for the multiplatform release of "Bubble.")

IFC Films 'Lonesome Jim' 3 out of 5 stars Director: Steve Buscemi Starring: Liv Tyler, Casey Affleck, Mary Kay Place, Kevin Corrigan, Seymour Cassel Run time: 87 minutes Release date: March 24, 2006 Rating: R for language, some sexuality and drug content. On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime Rate 'Lonesome Jim'   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

The crummy image befits the mental state of Casey Affleck's title character, who is returning home, with tail between legs, from a stint in New York City. He couldn't make it there, and he's expecting to give in to a nervous breakdown where a disturbingly over-affectionate mother (at one point, she comes to coo over him while he's bathing) will attend to his needs and not complain when he refuses even the simplest chores.

He's beaten to the punch by his brother, who attempts suicide before Jim can hit bottom. Feeling culpable for the near-catastrophe, Jim steps in to half-heartedly take on some of his sibling's responsibilities. He also stumbles into a desultory relationship with Anika (Liv Tyler, who after "Jersey Girl" seems to be specializing in coming to the unlikely romantic rescue of Affleck boys).

Buscemi and screenwriter James C. Strouse keep most of their characters about an ounce shy of irredeemably pathetic, and for the first half of the film they seem ready to succumb to the depression they're depicting. But plot lines do emerge, and this deadpan film gradually acquires a weird, low-key humor. We come to understand that though a fairy-tale end is out of the question, what the filmmakers have in store isn't as bleak as it first seems. The low-rent production values and low-wattage vibe will put off many viewers, but those who stick it out may find themselves, to their surprise, charmed.