"Factotum" **1/2 (out of four): Admirable but lethargic attempt to bring the Charles Bukowski novel to the screen.

On the surface, Bent Hamer would seem like an odd choice to adapt a Charles Bukowski novel. Working from a script he co-wrote with producer Jim Stark, the Norwegian director of 1995’s quirky “Eggs” proves to have a knack for capturing the stripped-down absurdity of Bukowski’s novel “Factotum”. Staging the story of Henry Chinaski (Matt Dillon) in perpetually sparse and increasingly dank Los Angeles environments, Mr. Hamer adequately sets a tone of aimlessness and despair. Unfortunately – like its lead character – the film doesn’t do much more than drift from one scene to another.

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