It’s easy to look at a lot of the indie “dramedies” that are coming out lately and point out their influences and criticize them for trying too hard to be this or that, but the truth of the matter is, when a director can make you laugh and feel something for the characters at the same time, that takes a certain level of talent. I’m not quite sure if first-time director Derick Martini falls into that category, but I’ve heard good things about this debut film Lymelife, which premiered last year at TIFF and also played at Sundance this year.

Set in Long Island during the 1970s, the story focuses on two families struggling to deal with economic hardships and an outbreak of Lyme disease. With a cast that includes Alec Baldwin, Jill Hennessy, Emma Roberts, Cynthia Nixon, Timothy Hutton and both Keiran and Rory Culkin, plus an executive producer credit from Martin Scorsese, it certainly looks like it has potential. The trailer indicates that it is a coming-of-age story balancing both humour and family tension. More to the point, anything with not one but TWO Culkins in it has to be good, right? Lymelife hits select theatres on April 8th.