Title: “Ben is Back”

Release date: In theaters Dec. 7, 2018; on disc/streaming Feb. 19, 2019

Starring: Lucas Hedges, Julia Roberts, Courtney B. Vance, Kathryn Newton, Alexandra Park

Directed by: Peter Hedges

Run time: 1 hour, 43 minutes

Rated: R

What it’s about: Nineteen-year-old Ben Burns unexpectedly returns home from drug rehab on Christmas Eve morning, and chaos ensues as his mother tries to keep him safe.

How I saw it: When a teen is addicted to opioids, what’s a mother to do? Plenty, even if it might or might not matter in the long run. And Holly Burns (Julia Roberts) does much to try to save her son, Ben Burns (Lucas Hedges), from himself and a seemingly inevitable early death in “Ben is Back,” a movie that explores the horrors of having a loved one battling a serious addiction but offers little in the way of solutions to a problem that might not have solutions.

Ben unexpectedly returns home from drug rehab on Christmas Eve morning, and his mother is happy to see him. To her, this represents an opportunity for a perfect upper middle-class Christmas at their home in upstate New York. But this is no “It’s a Wonderful Life.” His stepfather (Courtney B. Vance) is skeptical because he has seen his wife’s faith in her son destroyed before. Even more skeptical is Ben’s teenage sister (Kathryn Newton), who serves as the voice of reason no one is listening to. And about Ben: Almost everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie. Like many addicts, he can be charming and convincing while scheming to find his next hit. He might mean well, but if he does, his addiction doesn’t let it show.

Trouble shows up as soon as Ben does. In addition to creating a rift in his family, his presence causes a commotion in his small town, and we soon learn that Ben has screwed over just about anyone either selling drugs or buying drugs. Trouble comes to the Burns household when they return home from a night out and discover their house has been broken into, their Christmas tree upended and their beloved family dog apparently stolen.

Until this point, “Ben is Back” has been a standout character study. And no character is more important than Holly Burns. She does everything you’d expect a mother to do in this difficult situation, including making mistakes. She tries tough love. She tries nurturing love. She becomes a “helicopter” mom. And an enabler. And tries to be the hero. She is both protective of and apologetic for her son. In one scene, she obviously is agitated talking to an older couple at a mall. When the older woman leaves, Holly lashes out at the older man, who appears to have Alzheimer’s. Turns out he is a retired doctor who subscribed a powerful painkiller for Ben after he was injured in an accident at age 14, and Holly blames the doctor for her son’s current predicament. But later, Ben blames himself for having encouraged a young female friend to try heroin, but Holly will have none of that. Her tough love comes and goes, and her emotional confusion is just what you would expect in such a situation.

But once the Burns family dog is taken, “Ben is Back” turns away from what is working. It becomes a crime drama, and a not particularly good one. Ben seems to have an idea who took the dog, and his mom accompanies him as they cruise through the seedier sides of town and take a journey through Ben’s recent past. It isn’t pretty; at one point Holly learns her son has received drugs from one of his high school teachers in exchange for “favors.” Ben eventually flees from his mother, tracks down the dog and agrees to be a part of a drug deal to get the dog back. Problem is, Ben also is given drugs for his efforts. Now Holly must find her son before he relapses and perhaps worse.

The turn in the movie is jolting, and that’s unfortunate. Roberts is outstanding, if a bit heavy-handed, as Holly Burns. Few actresses can tell someone off the way Roberts can. Hedges (the son of director/writer Peter Hedges) is more subdued as Ben Burns. He is asked to cover a wide range of emotions, and few actors play a confused young adult the way Hedges does.

“Ben is Back” was released when Oscar hopefuls hit theaters. But it got lost in the shuffle (perhaps because Hedges was starring in another awards-worthy film, “Boys Erased,” about the same time). But no matter when it was released, “Ben is Back,” despite two outstanding lead performances, was not cut from Oscars cloth. Had it stayed on track after a promising first half, it might have been.

My score: 67 out of 100

Should you see it? Not a must-see but might be of interest if you know someone dealing with an addicted child.