The ubiquitous Chris Messina (“Argo’’ and four other 2012 releases) plays an obnoxious ne’er-do-well who returns home to a Massachusetts oceanfront village for his father’s funeral after a 10-year absence, and stirs up some trouble in this trite indie.
“Fairhaven’’ is actually a vehicle for Messina’s real-life buddy Tom O’Brien, who plays a hometown pal, a one-time football player who’s put his writing ambitions on hold to work on a fishing boat.
The third major character (Rich Sommer) is a single dad still nursing a crush on his ex-wife (Sarah Paulson), who he doesn’t know long ago had an affair with Messina’s character.
O’Brien also provided the lethargic direction and collaborated with Messina on the cliché-infested script, which is long on booze-filled confessions.