Run & Jump

Neuropsychologist Ted Fielding (Will Forte) travels from California to Ireland to study the case of Conor (Edward MacLiam), a loving husband and father who has been left barely functional by a crippling stroke. But the good doctor’s attempts to blend quietly into the background are frustrated when he develops a growing affection for Conor’s sparky wife Vanetia (Maxine Peake), feelings which may, in fact, be reciprocated.

‘Run & Jump’ is a heartfelt but rather tame portrait of lives shattered by illness. It’s hard to fault the central performances, with the exception of former ‘Saturday Night Live’ comic Forte, whose attempt to go straight involves having a beard and looking glum. The big problem is that both the script and direction are so mired in indie cliché – washed-out colours, plaintive acoustic guitars, women who demonstrate their free spiritedness by cycling in the rain and dancing in the kitchen – that the film feels like a compilation of old ideas. ‘Run & Jump’ is sweet and clearly personal, but that’s not quite enough to make it stand out.