The Bachelors

Writer/director Kurt Voelker proves that novelty isn't everything in this deceptively affecting study of male grief. At times, the story of teacher JK Simmons's inability to come to terms with the death of his wife barely feels a notch above a TV-movie weepie, especially when vivacious colleague Julie Delpy takes a shine to him. And despite the efforts of a psychiatrist (Harold Perrineau), Simmons's teacher loses himself in the desolation of loss, with the result that he barely has the emotional energy to help his teenage son (Josh Wiggins) with his own grief. Instead, he channels his anguish into supporting a self-harming classmate (Odeya Rush) in a subplot that tips the material further into mawkishness. Yet the sincerity of the scripting and the conviction of the performances keep us engaged, even when the occasional scene rings hollow as Voelker hastens towards an upbeat conclusion.