Rob Reiner, son explore a dark time in 'Being Charlie'

Seated in a leather armchair in a cozy corner of his West Hollywood office on a recent afternoon, Rob Reiner spoke candidly about that difficult time.

[...] Rob and Nick Reiner explore the ordeal in the semi-autobiographical film "Being Charlie," out in limited release Friday.

With Rob Reiner's eventual guidance, the two friends' script evolved from a half-hour rehab comedy into "Being Charlie," a more dramatic and truthful rendering of a teenage boy's issues with drugs, rehab and a famous father that takes into account the parents' side of things, too.

"Jurassic World's" Nick Robinson stars as the disaffected, searching kid at the center.

In the film, the father, a movie star with political ambitions played by Cary Elwes (working with Rob Reiner for the first time since "The Princess Bride") says the thing about desks and diplomas, for instance.

While he's still "Meathead" from TV's "All In the Family" to many boomers, younger generations see him more as the director of a handful of now-classic movies.

The offices of his Castle Rock independent production company are inhabited by posters, photos and trinkets from his half century in the business, like a worn scrapbook of photos from "The Princess Bride" casually displayed on the coffee table.

[...] he's staying active in the industry, even if the landscape of how films get made has changed drastically.