Paul Dano is a shining beacon in the bleak and disconnected indie drama, "For Ellen."

Ordinarily, coming-of-age films center on a kid or group of kids who are confronted with problems that propel them into adulthood. "For Ellen" is very interesting in that Dano is Joby Taylor, a struggling rock star who has never reached full maturity or an understanding of adulthood until his wife Claire (Margarita Levieva) files for divorce. Joby agrees to the divorce so that he can profit from the sale of their house, but is slammed with a condition: Claire gets custody of their daughter, Ellen.

Rushing overnight from a gig to intercept Claire, Joby attempts to delay proceedings with the hope of having a day alone with Ellen. Joby spends his time trying to convince everyone around him that what he wants and needs is custody, even if he hasn't truly convinced himself.

Written and directed by So Yong Kim, "For Ellen" is a film, much like Dano's character, that fails to find an emotional connection with its audience.