The title character in “The Unbreakable Boy” is a whirlwind, a handful, a lot. Austin, an eighth grader with autism, is often in overdrive, whether he’s counting toys or rattling off the courtroom monologue from “A Few Good Men.” He also has a genetic brittle-bone disorder that frequently lands him in the emergency room. Crucially, though, these challenges never diminish his spirit. Played with exuberance by Jacob Laval, Austin is a disrupter and catalyst, a lesson in joyful mettle to everyone around him — especially his parents (Zachary Levi and Meghann Fahy).
Jon Gunn, the writer-director and a practiced hand in the inspirational genre (“Ordinary Angels”), adapted the memoir by Scott LeRette, Austin’s father, but flipped the perspective to the boy’s. There are well-deployed bursts of kid’s-eye-view animation and humorous asides, but mainly the story, set in Oklahoma, dispenses its lessons in gratitude, self-forgiveness and sobriety with straightforward sincerity. Sometimes that works, and sometimes it lands with a thud.
This is also the story of a marriage. As narrated by Austin and revealed in flashbacks, his parents’ courtship traveled an ultra-brief road from meet-cute to pregnancy, and Scott and Teresa didn’t so much fall in love as do the right thing. Raising Austin spurs them to grow up, although Scott, with his increasing dependence on alcohol, is clearly the laggard. Some might find it comforting that Scott has an imaginary friend (Drew Powell), a cross between a drinking buddy and a voice of conscience. Others will find it merely distracting.
Fahy, as the more grounded parent, lends understated warmth to this pleasant but plodding family drama. Amid the gentle nods to churchgoing, 12-step programs and the Japanese art of kintsugi (the mending of broken items using precious metals that accentuate the cracks), “The Unbreakable Boy” could have benefited from a stronger infusion of Austin’s vitality.
The Unbreakable Boy
Rated PG. Running time: 1 hour 49 minutes. In theaters.
