FANTASY LIFE Discovery

Sometimes in life, one just needs to hear “You’re functional” for it all to be okay — even if those words of wisdom come from your psychiatrist. But in the case of 30-something nebbish Sam Stein (writer/director Matthew Shear), his shrink Dr. Fred (Judd Hirsch) fails to soothe his impromptu panic attacks with platitudes. Recently laid off from his basement-dwelling job as a paralegal, Sam is barely skating by in New York when Fred’s wife invites him to babysit their three grandchildren. The girls’ mother, Dianne (played by the endlessly winsome Amanda Peet), is an out-of-work actress struggling with her own mental health while her marriage to David (Alessandro Nivola), an aloof traveling musician, is on the rocks. As Sam and Dianne continue to cross paths, the endearing pair of neurotics develop an unexpected and profound understanding of one another’s flaws. Anchored by lively performances of a close-knit Jewish family from a stacked ensemble cast, Matthew Shear — a frequent collaborator of Noah Baumbach — in his directorial debut, delivers an intimate, hilarious and authentic representation of mental illness and its contemporary woes. Winner of the Narrative Feature Audience Award at this year’s SXSW. –Julia Kipnis