Adrift in Manhattan

There are larger themes at work here—the ability to see, or at least perceive, is the common element—and for very patient viewers who enjoy character studies that are slow to unravel, the aptly named Adrift will be savored. However, those who prefer traditional stories that announce themselves in the tagline will feel not just adrift but shipwrecked. Heather Graham stars as optometrist Rose Phipps, who is recovering from the death of her child. On the professional side, she has only bad news for an elderly artist patient (Dominic Chianese), who is going blind. Meanwhile, an amateur photographer (Victor Rasuk) secretly photographs Rose, develops a crush on her and then ... well, let’s just say that the low-key series of incidents involving grieving people finally shapes into a story.

Shelf Talk: Dramatic chamber pieces are a tough sell, but Graham (who has an explicit sex scene with Rasuk in the unrated version), William Baldwin as her likeable ex and Chianese (The Sopranos’ “Uncle Junior”) give Adrift some star power. (Elizabeth Peña also has a small role.) Although there isn’t likely to be much positive word-of-mouth, as there isn’t much of a payoff here, viewers could still talk about the movie, with Graham’s sex scene as the point of conversation. Screen Media will roll out TV, print and radio advertising near street date, while Graham, who is on the November cover of Shape magazine, will do a publicity tour to raise awareness.