What it achieves most plangently is a realistic, empathetic portrayal of a young man’s attempts at self-assertion, with all the pain, embarrassment, and missteps that go with it. The performances and mise-en-scene have a naturalistic quality.

The film's somber subject matter is brightened by the crafty direction razor-sharp editing, snarky camera angles, close-up detail shots. And Raymond's charming innocence, nicely underplayed by novice actor Davies, will prompt more compassion than malice.

This is not a feel-good movie. It is a unique effort to do something unusual with suburban pathos.

Writer-director David O Russell's well-observed film captures the sullen defensiveness of adolescence, and finds humour and sensuality in strange places.