It’s a theme universally employed: Man faces midlife existential crisis, man makes a huge mistake by trying to appease his instinctual need to reinvent himself and man always ends up right back in the arms of his wife whom he wronged but who takes him back anyway.

It’s a sick cycle, one that does little for the melodrama genre and one that often frustrates modern viewers due to its over-sympathetic reading of the situation. Men around the world are allowed and, in fact, do have these feelings when they hit a certain age marker. But films that depict this crisis are often far too indulgent and unhelpful.

In the newest film by writer-director Richard Levine entitled Every Day, the wife, played by the wonderful Helen Hunt, is forced to open her home to her deplorable and antisocial father who is battling a sickness of some sort. She is depressed and anxious to live with a man who was never a positive part of her life. Her husband Ned (Liev Schreiber) works as a writer for a television show that prides itself on bringing viewers the most scandalous and sex-driven material on the air.

Ned’s boss (Eddie Izzard) is not pleased with the work Ned is producing and decides that he needs to work with a fellow writer (Carla Gugino) to add some spice to his bland work. Coupled with stress at work is his 15-year-old son Jonah (Ezra Miller) who is questioning his sexuality.

The long nights of ‘work’ with his hot co-worker naturally turn into much more than a pizza party, and poor Ned is caught up in issues of morality and fidelity. The family hits some sharp rocks but is able to stop the bleeding long enough to patch things up in the wake of tragedy.

Written by Levine and inspired by experiences in his own life, the film definitely leans towards offering a sympathetic view of the lead male character, the somewhat adulterous husband who heavily relies on his grief-stricken wife for constant support and seems to often unintentionally blame her for his troubles at work.

The film isn’t all bad. The performances by Schreiber and Hunt are what you would expect from A-list actors, and their young co-stars can fend for themselves when given onscreen time. However, the story is a rehashing of what we know to be true, and honestly, it’s getting a little old.

Grade: C



Every Day releases in select theaters Jan. 14.