It’s the Office Space of retirement homes! Or at least it tries to be. Shot mockumentary style (a la TV’s The Office), Assisted Living centers on a pot-smoking slacker janitor named Todd. When not shirking his duties and toking up in his car, Todd helps to keep the elderly residents of a nursing home focused on their prescribed daily activities. His immaturity tends to get him taken to task by his boss. It also makes him an attractive alternative to the rest of the rigid staff for the bored seniors marking time at Bingo games. One aged woman in particular, Mrs. Pearlman, takes a shine to Todd, who flip-flops between squirming away and giving her the extra attention she demands. When she desperately wants to use the phone, he pretends to be the voices of her deceased relatives calling from Heaven. Seemingly innocent games like this only end up upsetting and confusing Mrs. Pearlman, who is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s. Before long, Todd’s goofing around no longer protects him from the miserable reality of his surroundings, and the residents’ depression rubs off on him. Deciding to make what he believes is better use of his and Mrs. Pearlman’s over-regulated time, Todd inevitably gets fired for breaking protocol. The film is a dramatic comedy, but you’re never quite comfortable enough to enjoy the jokey parts. Todd’s risky misbehavior and the old folks’ ennui are too realistic for us to mock. The premise and setting are interesting, but perhaps too tragic to be appropriate for the style.

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