New comedy drama The King of Staten Island, which stars SNL favourite Pete Davidson and is directed by Judd Apatow (Freaks and Geeks, The 40-Year-Old Virgin), is available to watch at home from today.
The personal story follows Scott (Davidson), a 24-year-old still living with his mum (Marisa Tomei) and struggling to move forward after the death of his firefighter father when he was seven.
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Scott's layabout lifestyle is disrupted when his mum strikes up a romance with no-nonsense Ray (Bill Burr), another fireman. The two men's clashing personalities force Scott to face up to his grief and attempt to get his life back on track.
Early reviews have been positive, with the movie getting a respectable 76 percent on Rotten Tomatoes based on critics' responses.
The story is especially personal to Davidson, who also co-wrote the script with Apatow and stand-up Dave Sirius. Like Scott, he lost his father - a firefighter who was also called Scott - who died doing his job during the 9/11 terrorist attack.
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The film's exploration of mental health issues is also close to Davidson's heart. The comedian has been open about self-harming and his diagnosis with borderline personality disorder.
Scott suffers from ADHD in the film, and like Davidson he has Crohn's disease - a bowel condition which leaves him in chronic pain.
Speaking about the experience of making such a personal movie, Davidson told LADbible: "It wasn't too difficult because I had Judd there at the helm. Judd and I have a great relationship and he's always very sensitive to how I'm feeling and my issues.
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"We just really talked about everything and were really open and honest. I think because there was such a loving environment around it was rather easy for me to do this."
Apatow said of the film: "[Scott's] life isn't going the way he wants, he's kind of lost. Only by letting go of some of his friends who are taking him in a bad direction can he evolve and grow up.
"We all have turning point moments in our lives where we can make good decisions or really bad decisions, and this is about him hitting bottom in a bunch of ways."
The King of Staten Island will be available to Rent at Home from today (12 June) from Sky Store, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play and other digital retailers.
Topics: TV and Film, US Entertainment