“Me and You” is the most inessential movie ever directed by the legendary Bernardo Bertolucci. It’s also an entirely serviceable coming of age story, capably performed by its two leads and emotionally affecting within the constraints of its small scale aims. The filmmaker’s first Italian language movie in 30 years avoids making any bold statements or indulging in advanced formalism in favor of a trim but well-acted drama. Adapting Gilbert Adair’s novel, the story involves 14-year-old Lorenzo (Jacobo Olmo Antinori), a disaffected teen who tells his mother he’s going on a ski trip and sneaks into the basement to throw a private party for himself. When the shindig is inadvertently crashed by his drug-addicted older sister (Tea Falco), the duo spend the next few days hanging out, listening to music and talking about life. Naturally, Lorenzo experiences a window into young adulthood by watching his troubled relative moan about her vices. While the emotional arc is familiar, however, “Me and You” maintains a slow, pensive style that allows the material to avoid rote sentimentalism in favor of hints of darkness lurking in Lorenzo’s burgeoning epiphanies. It’s a strangely modern work from the 72-year-old director in more ways one — with a soundtrack that includes Arcade Fire, it’s easy to read the movie as Bertolucci’s triumphant statement on his lingering vitality. [Eric Kohn] Criticwire grade: B+
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