Terry takes to caring for Rudy while Sammy is at work. In one scene, he takes Rudy to a local bar to play pool. He does it not because he doesn t know any better, but because he sees that Rudy is bored and overprotected. In his own way, Terry is a sensible adult. Ruffalo s performance could have gone wrong in so many ways.
Terry almost begs to be overplayed.
Instead, he delivers a controlled performance that doesn t aim for any specific effect. Furrowing his dark eyebrows, Ruffalo is at once aloof and intense, winning us over with boyish insolence. As Terry matures, Sammy lapses into adolescence. Shuttling between trysts, she can barely control her amusement. She explodes in laughter.