There’s nothing quite like the bond between siblings. Though you grow up in the same house, eat the same meals, and have the same parents, you can have vastly different experiences and viewpoints on certain situations. Thus, you become vastly different people in adulthood. Sometimes, siblings who were inseparable throughout their childhood drift apart once they grow up, while others get closer once they’ve matured and managed to start their own lives.

A trio of siblings that falls into that former category sits at the heart of The Adults — a film that seeks to examine this strange, intense bond, and what happens between people after they no longer have the uniting force of their parents. There’s workaholic Eric (Michael Cera), who rarely returns to his hometown and struggles with a gambling addiction; Rachel (Hannah Gross), the most traditionally responsible one who took care of the house and her mother’s dog after her passing; and sensitive peacemaker Maggie (Sophia Lillis), who’s struggling to figure out her next step in life after dropping out of college.
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‘The Adults’ Captures the Unique Languages Families Speak With Each Other

Image via Universal

The premise of The Adults is simple: Eric decides to visit home one weekend for the first time in three years and ends up continuing to extend his trip after falling into the local poker scene. Its simplicity works well as this is, at its core, a powerful, lovingly crafted character study. Though you may relate to one of the siblings more than others, it’s easy to feel compassion for all of them as it’s clear they’re all struggling in their own ways. All are looking for and craving something they’re having trouble even naming, let alone finding.

Eric disappears into his gambling addiction to cope, while Maggie suffers from panic attacks. We eventually learn that Rachel, who seems more serious and put-together, struggles with anxiety and depression. Mental illness is touched on in a way that feels real. It is never made light of but rarely ever spoken about due to the way they grew up. At one point, Rachel reveals her mother suffered from panic attacks as well, and there’s a good chance their father did, too, but he never confessed to them nor any other feelings. In this small scene, we’re introduced to the concept that these struggles can be hereditary and shape us far after we’re grown. The siblings didn’t have an example from their father for how to cope, nor did they presumably have much language in order to express their feelings — something that follows them well into adulthood.

Still, the siblings do try to speak to each other in their own way using their own language — one comprised of inside jokes, niche references, and songs and dances they made up in the living room years ago. And it oftentimes seems that’s the only way they can effectively communicate. Though it may seem a strange comparison, I found myself thinking of a scene in the Season 2 finale of Succession in which the three Roy siblings vying for CEO attempt to talk about deep feelings though can only do so by making their voices scratchy and strangely pitched. The Adults employs a similar tactic, even taking it a step further by having them speak through characters they used to play as back in their childhood.

The fact that the film captures this unique familial language so successfully is its biggest triumph. It’s easy to believe these three grew up together and have decades’ worth of shared history. They know how to make each other laugh, but they also know how to make each other hurt, and the fact that laughter and humor can be a weapon as much as a piece of connective tissue is particularly fascinating. Some of the most heartbreaking moments come when Rachel and Maggie refuse to laugh when Eric tries to contribute to a bit the two are doing. “You used to think I was the funniest person in the world,” he sadly tells Maggie in a quietly devastating scene. It’s a credit to Dustin Guy Defa’s writing and direction that each line of dialogue feels authentic and specific, without a phony or forced beat to be found.

And it’s Defa’s script and direction that allow all three of its main actors to do some of their best, most nuanced work. This isn’t a completely new turn for any of them — Cera’s no stranger to playing an eccentric outcast, and Lillis has been known to embody offbeat, nervous characters with their fair share of quirks — but there is something that feels special due to how the dynamics between all of them are prioritized and feel singular. There’s a real sweetness and purity to Eric and Maggie’s relationship — she completely adores him, and he does his best to look out for her in classic big brother fashion. (It’s a tiny choice, but the way Lillis clicks a pen on Cera’s cheek in one scene feels so quintessentially younger sistery and lived-in.) It stands in contrast to Maggie and Rachel’s relationship, as the two of them are close and fall into easy jokes and patterns, their sisterly bond feeling sturdier and more casual. Eric and Rachel’s dynamic is the most fractured, with the most distance between them, as they’ve each pushed each other away due to perceived egos, slights, and resentments.

‘The Adults’ Can Give Us a Little Too Much of a Good Thing

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For the most part, The Adults is a well-paced film, but there are a few moments that feel like they’re on the verge of overstaying their welcome. Though the particular way the siblings communicate — funny voices, songs, dancing, etc. — is the movie’s best quality, there is such thing as too much of a good thing. The performances are enjoyable to watch — and the three do genuinely sound gorgeous together when they sing — but at a point, it feels like their effectiveness starts to plateau a bit. Paring back a song and dance or two and tightening up some of the arguments they have in character as imaginary figures from their childhood could up the impact of those moments when they do happen. Defa does such a great job of grounding us in this family that a little more restraint would still get the same point across without the fatigue that going around in circles starts to create.

Still, it’s a hard balance to find, and another place where The Adults thrives is its tone. A true dramedy, it’s as raw and painful as it is refreshing and cathartic. Though nothing is tied up in a neat little bow at the end, you’re left with an undeniable feeling of hopefulness. You’re sure to laugh, and there’s a good chance you’ll shed a few tears, too. It might even inspire you to pick up the phone and call your sibling to reminisce about that dance you choreographed to “Mambo No. 5” in the basement.

Rating: B+

The Adults showed at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival and is in theaters starting August 18.