Nestled inside this conventionally packaged comedy drama is an affecting, jagged take on grief, depression and self-sabotage. A grizzled JK Simmons stars as Bill Palet, a widowed maths teacher who moves from San Francisco to Los Angeles with his teenage son Wes (Josh Wiggins) for a job at a posh private school, where both struggle with the opposite sex. Wes is drawn to his troubled homework partner Lacy (Odeya Rush), while Bill grows a guilty connection with lovable French teacher Carine (Julie Delpy, making some excellent fish faces). There’s a corny metaphor about cross-country running and the catharsis that comes from pushing through the pain of loss, but strong central performances mean that this is still moving stuff.
