The Doldrums

The Doldrums is a not-coming-of-age movie that centers around three characters - Alec, Matt, and Cole - and how their friendship shifts when Alec, the oldest, goes off to college. Matt and Cole stay back home. The film is structured in six vignettes, marking Alec's biannual visits back to his hometown during the breaks in college. Each time he comes back, the three come together and party. Partying becomes more frequent and eventually a lifestyle for Matt and Cole. This is only spurred on by the music and drugs they consume, and their complete adult life is built in this image. Alec notices that despite all of them growing older, his friends seem to be stagnating and they are progressively growing apart. (Dallas International Film Festival)