★★★

Fans of Tim Robinson’s “I Think You Should Leave,” and his distinct brand of uncomfortable comedy, will likely find plenty to enjoy with the Pacific Northwest-made, micro-budget cringefest Assets & Liabilities. At a crisp, well-paced 60 minutes, writer/director/actor Zach Weintraub fearlessly leaves everything on screen as a husband and father of a young child, whose wife goes out of town for a weekend. 

Taking a mental health day, Weintraub’s character proceeds to become increasingly unhinged and immature the longer the day goes. Eventually, he pulls out a costume that will help him fit in with a younger crowd, dons a fake moustache and drives out to a skate park where he practices his kick flips and other random skateboarding moves.

The film becomes increasingly deranged, though Weintraub never quite loses a grip on his film. He meets a skate punk in his 20s, realizes an unlikely connection, and then has to find a way out of the situation he’s in, completely stoned out of his mind.

Assets & Liabilities never really finds that sweet spot between relatability and humiliation that Robinson’s work often does, but the film is as audacious, brave, and ambitious. Not at all for everyone, with a final scene that will likely divide audiences, Assets & Liabilities earns points for taking risks and keeping us engaged each step along the way.

Assets & Liabilities was screened as part of the 52nd Seattle International Film Festival.