by Jeff Alan, Contributing Writer
When life gets you down, movies make it better. The newest addition to Kevin Smith’s body of work comes in the form of the comedy The 4:30 Movie, written and directed by the man himself. The film stars a collection of mostly obscure younger actors consisting of Austin Zajur, Nicolas Cirillo, Reed Northrup, and Siena Agudong, with some smaller but consistent roles played by Ken Jeong, Genesis Rodriguez, Adam Pally, and Kate Micucci.
The 4:30 Movie starts in the summer of 1986 with young high school junior Brian David (Zajur), who calls sophomore Melody Barnegat (Agudong), a girl he has had secret feelings for over the last year. After several minutes of talking and playful flirting, Brian asks her out on a date to the movies to a 4:30 screening of a film they both want to see. Brian spends a lot of time at the local movie theater hopping from film to film in a single day with his two buddies, Belly (Northrup) and Burny (Cirillo). But when unexpected circumstances occur, the three friends find themselves in and out of the theater, and Brian tries desperately to make sure he is there in time for his long-awaited date with Melody.
I’m ashamed to say I haven’t seen many of Kevin Smith’s film (a wrong I will assuredly right in the near future after this viewing), but this being one of the first films I’ve seen from him in a long time, I was pleasantly surprised! It is a lot more grounded and down-to-earth than the others I’ve seen, being centered around a very relatable story that nearly anyone can see themselves in. It’s a simple narrative, but it leads to some genuinely funny moments and gives the main characters each a really good — if not small — arc throughout.
One thing I think Smith nails in this film is the nostalgia of the ‘80s, from the wardrobe, to the music, to the bad ’80s films that are shown in pieces while in the theater. But as much as the film shows you nostalgia, it also makes you feel it on a deeper level when you see Brian and Melody interacting and agreeing to the date, and Brian’s excitement for the date. I remember the excitement high school me felt when I would tell my buddies I had a date, and feeling like a big shot paying for the movie and the popcorn. With The 4:30 Movie, all those feelings came rushing back to me — this could be all of us who were elated to be taking someone they liked so much out on a date for the first time. It was nice remembering those times of my life, even though I am so far removed from them.
Smith also makes his absolute adoration of film and the industry abundantly apparent. Brian is cinema-obsessed, evidence by the fact that he rallies his best friends into paying for a ticket to the earliest showing at the theater, and then proceeding to go as far as hiding in the bathroom between films so they can sneak into the next film, often spending all day at the theater. But there’s a truly wonderful scene toward the end of the film that demonstrates how much Smith truly loves filmmaking and watching movies. I would quote some of the really beautiful lines of this scene, but I don’t want to give them away, because they are essentially moving love letters to filmmaking from Smith’s desk.
If I were to criticize the The 4:30 Movie at all, there are some repetitive comedic moments which can only be described as low-hanging fruit. For example, because this film is set in 1986, it makes a lot of jokes about things that ended up happening in the modern day that were not very original. At one point someone says — I’m paraphrasing slightly — “who would make a trilogy to Star Wars that tells us episodes one, two, and three that shows us stuff before the first Star Wars?”, and “Oh that Bill Cosby, he will only ever be regarded as the best man in the world,” both of which are pretty unoriginal jokes — they’re a little lazy and forced. But outside of those small instances, The 4:30 Movie is well-written.
Overall, The 4:30 Movie is a pretty fun little film! It’s not going to win any major awards, but it’s a fun, relatable story with funny characters and situations. There are moments of realism and a touching tribute to the art of filmmaking, and it put me on a great trip down memory lane!
Rating: Liked It
The 4:30 Movie is currently playing in theaters
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