Man in the Chair

The superb Christopher Plummer is Flash, a curmudgeon with a hankering for classic movies and booze. Cameron (Michael Angarano) is a volatile teen who commits grand theft auto just because the car is an exact replica from Christine. Their relationship is forged in the darkness of a movie theater and fueled by a mutual appreciation of rebellion and cinema. Cameron enters a student film contest, though he lacks the resources of his peers. Learning that Flash is a retired Hollywood gaffer-and the only surviving crew member from Citizen Kane-Cameron follows him to his home at the Motion Picture Residence for the Elderly, a colony of aging film folk set aside by the industry. A quirky fellowship develops, in which Flash and his friends help Cameron make his film, and, in doing so, change his life. Plummer is outstanding as the cantankerous cynic who becomes an ardent mentor.