Boyhood: After its stellar reception at this year's Sundance Film Festival, Richard Linklater's 12 year project finally opens this weekend. The story follows Mason (Ellar Coltrane) from the ages of 5 to 18. We see him confront all the painstaking aspects of growing up as we watch him grow older in real time. Linklater's unique approach to this film essentially allows it to serve as a time capsule, allowing millennials to retrace their cultural childhood and revisit the songs, memories, and experiences that we can see in Mason. 

Land Ho!: This weekend's indies are definitely offering you a timeline of life, as Boyhood and Land Ho! open in the same weekend. While adolescence can be tough, old age isn't necessarily a walk in the park. That's why Aaron Katz and Martha Stephens' film Land Ho! gives us a refreshing take on aging through this classic roadtrip narrative. The film follows Mitch (Earl Lynn Nelson) and Colin (Paul Eenhorn), an eldery brother and ex-brother-in-law who embark on an adventure in Iceland, finding themselves in unexpected circumstances that will definitely change the way we percieve old age. 

A Long Way Down: I suppose this Nick Hornby adaptation sort of serves as the end to the 'life' trilogy that has taken shape in this weekend's indies. We've already seen adolesence, old age—and now, death? A Long Way Down tells the story of four strangers who meet on top of a tower as they are about to end their lives on New Years Eve. These four individuals collectively decide to hold out on their plans until Valentines Day, and in the mean time form an unlikely friendship that eventually saves their lives.