by Neil Labute
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Product Description
No American playwright has written more compellingly about the subtle ways in which people inflict pain on each other than Neil LaBute. His films In the Company of Men and Your Friends and Neighbors both gained critical renown for their biting satire and caustic wit. Now, with The Distance from Here, he has written his most riveting play yet, an intense look at the dark side of American suburbia. With little to occupy their time other than finding a decent place to hang out—the zoo, the mall, the school parking lot—Darrell and Tim are two American teenagers who lack any direction or purpose in their lives. When Darrell’s suspicion about the faithlessness of his girlfriend is confirmed and Tim comes to her defense, there is nothing to brake their momentum as all three speed toward disaster.
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Average Customer Review:
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
 TV's on and no one's home, 2006-12-14
This is a work that John Lahr (theater reviewer for The New Yorker) suggested be placed on the short list of important contemporary plays. I have to agree. It is the type of play that can and should be read again and again, each reading revealing some new aspect of story, some deeper layer of meaning, and some subtle nuance of character.
The prime movers of the story are Darrell and Tim, two teenagers on the precipice of, well, falling off of it and into a void of mindless jobs, empty relationships, and violence and alcohol infused escapism. It's almost as if they see the world passing them by, but lack the desire or energy to try to keep up. But what kind of a world is it anyway? One of manufactured sensation, numbing repetition, and greeting card emotional relationships. The plot revolves around Darrell's growing belief that his girlfriend Jenn has betrayed and lied to him. His eventual response to the perceived betrayal is misguided and shocking, and will stay with you long after you've finished reading.
What LaBute has managed so brilliantly is tell an intricate story with characters who are essentially inarticulate. Between the um's and whatever's he creates an America we fear is out there, perhaps even glimpse from time to time, but quickly put out of our minds. "The Distance From Here" shows us it may not be as far away as we think.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
An incredible play--another notch in Labute's belt, 2005-04-23
This is an incredible play. In this play Labute writes about the type of situations that you'd see on Jerry Springer, so this is a kind of "Labute does Jerry Springer." I may be an oddity, but I like Springer. I also like Labute, so this is a great play for the likes of me.
This play isn't for everyone, but if you've ever read Labute, then you know that nothing he writes is for everyone. It probably borders on being his darkest play, with frequent use of the f, c, and n words, and has a bunch of other racial slurs in it.
I've kind of been wondering about what kind of a person Labute is. Is he a kind of Stephen King-type person who writes well, but is really a weirdo, or what? In the book, Labute writes a two-page introduction that contains such humanity, care for people, and emotion, that it answered this question for me--he's is very human, but is extremely observational about the dark side of life.
This is one of my top two Labute plays. Excellent job.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
This is why we read., 2004-11-05
I have not seen this play performed, only read it, and what I read was excellent. Fans of Neil Labute's work will be pleased to see that he has branched out to a new demographic, straying from the upper-middle class business-man type that so commonly (although not regrettably) populate his plays and stories.
Instead what we have is the story of a group of lower-class friends and family - although I hate the term, "white-trash" does come to mind. However Mr. labute does not treat them as such. Rather he presents them as down-on-their-luck folk that have simply been delt a rotten hand in life and who know in spite of their hopes that their is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Hell, there's not even a rainbow.
The story revolves around a kid named Darrel, his friends Tim and Jenn, and his family which consists of an apathetic mother, a tough-guy of a step father and a naive older-step sister. Labute focuses on the influence of family and friends and the hierarchy of the lower class - with the person who is the least affected by inevitable physical and emotional abuse ruling over them all.
I myself did not grow up in a house with these people, these kinds of people, but I did know them well through school and friends. Neil Labute has captured a small, and almost completely unrecorded demographic of the american subculture and should be praised for his accuracy, honesty and unblinking earnestness in the telling of their story. Don't expect to enjoy this as you would a regular play. Chances are that most people will probably set this book down with the sense that they have just witnessed something gross and disturbing. And indeed they have. But you will be a better person because of it. This, folks, is why we read.
2 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
 Oh Neil, Was this your first?, 2004-10-16
Alright. Here we go. Let me first start by saying, I LOVE Neil LaBute and his writing. He's hard, gritty, and exposes all that deep, personal stuff that our bottled up society tries so desperatly to hide. I, myself, have become inspired many times to write my own works after reading his shows. I would consider him, as well do many of my colleges, to be one of the greatest examples of a contemporary theatre playwright.
But he kinda missed the boat with this one.
Sure, it was a good idea. But just because it was a good idea doesn't mean it goes anywhere. Much like this play. It goes nowhere. In fact, it never starts. It's just kinda like that dumb horse that forgets to run after the gun is fired. We just see some characters enter, talk about pointless stuff, and they leave. It really doesn't pick up until the last few chapters, but even then it isn't satisfying enough to make up for the whole other eighty something pages you had to dredge through just to get to that point.
And maybe that's what he wanted. Nothing characters with no depth and a serious lack of direction, making their distance from there, quite a long and arduous task, especially for characters of their caliber, or lack of it. The mere thought of any sort of positive advancement in their lives would cause any one of them to either give up a go drink a 40 or send them into a depression so deep that suicide is the only comfort. So those characters sit there, twiddling their thumbs, waiting in their static lives for something to come along a give them a Second of Pleasure (read that one, it's great!). Shoot, I bet if someone were to burp it would give them the most action they'd ever seen.
So, once again, I'm sorry Neil LaBute, but this one just wasn't your best work. I, being a young playwright myself, have turned a lot of bad work. And some good stuff too. Much like a lot of his other works.
I would highly recommend The Shape of Things (my personal favorite), The Mercy Seat, Seconds of Pleasure, and Bash. All are amazing testaments to the shining and shocking brilliance that is Neil LaBute.
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