De Niro especially ‘Fine’ in this poignant family dramedy

For about 40 years, in some 70 films, Robert De Niro has submerged himself into character. We relish his work most when he’s being dynamic and dangerous — “Mean Streets,” “Godfather II,” “Raging Bull,” “Goodfellas,” “Heat,” “Cape Fear” — or when he spoofs that side of himself in the “Analyze This” and “Meet the Parents” franchises. But in his latest film “Everybody’s Fine,” a poignant, but slow, dramedy about family, there’s plenty of time to ponder the softer side of an iconic actor. The performances succeed better than the screenplay. And it’s less frolicking and more muted than the misleading ads — set to the sunny strains of Stevie Wonder’s “Sign, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours” — would have you believe.

Adopting Giuseppe Tornatore’s 1990 film “Stanno tutti bene,” director-writer Kirk Jones (“Waking Ned Divine,” “Nanny McPhee”) contrives the story of an ailing widower trying to bond with his grown children by traveling around the country to deliver mystery envelopes to them. Though emotions are relatable and the tenor of the relationships feels credible, the anticlimactic envelope gimmick disappoints. Furthermore, the plot depends on a big red herring and unlikely behaviors by De Niro’s paternal protagonist Frank Goode and his dysfunctional/dishonest offspring.

Frank is lonely. Since his wife died a few months ago and he retired from his factory job, he has felt disconnected to a family that she kept close. His former work, applying insulation to telephone wire, becomes an ironic (if too obvious) recurring metaphor as he goes to try to authentically communicate with his unhappily married daughter Amy (Kate Beckinsale) in Chicago, underachieving musician son Robert (Sam Rockwell) in Denver, covertly lesbian daughter Rosie (Drew Barrymore) in Las Vegas and missing son David in New York.

The other children know what’s happened to David. But in the same way that they withhold the truth of their own lives from their dad, they keep David’s situation quiet with him too.

As events unfold, Frank learns that he put too much parental pressure on his kids. And the kids come to realize how much they value him and the family. Just in time for the holidays!

Barrymore and De Niro stand out for heartfelt but measured characterizations. Bringing to mind here his undervalued, lower key roles — in films like “A Bronx Tale,” “Falling in Love,” and “Wag the Dog” — De Niro is especially “Fine.”