Spring Forward

Two New England Parks Department workers share opinions and philosophies in this modest, understated drama about second chances and friendship. The eldest worker (Ned Beatty) is on the verge of retirement. His new partner (Liev Schreiber) is a hotheaded ex-convict struggling to emotionally and intellectually mature and re-enter society. Over a year, this episodic talk-fest steadily grows in strength and depth as two flawed, very different and very ordinary men try to make some sense out of life. The acting is excellent and writer-director Tom Gilroy wisely gives the characters room to meander as well as sharply focus on their own and each other’s niche in the world.