For La Beouf, performing was both a legacy and a requirement.
In an early interview, the Disney Channel success story explains, “I come from five generations of performers.” His mother was an ex-ballerina, and his father was a former circus clown turned drug addict.
Through a series of narrative and emotional crescendos, La Beouf is required to perform a ridiculous number of denouements.
He somehow manages to carry this overambitious script, breaking over and over again with sincere emotion.
In a gripping scene at the end of the film, Gabe holds a gun to his wife’s head as his son sobs.