TIFF 2024 Review: The Life of Chuck
The Life of Chuck (2024)
Directed by Mike Flanagan
Starring Tom Hiddleston, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillan, and Jacob Tremblay
As seen at the film’s world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Stephen King’s novellas have often led to some great films, arguably more so than his full-length novels. Stand By Me (1986), The Shawshank Redemption (1994), and The Green Mile (1999) were all based on King’s novellas. The last time Mike Flanagan adapted a King work was the 2013 novel follow-up to The Shining, Doctor Sleep. I was extremely disappointed with that film, especially after Gerald’s Game (2017), Flanagan’s first film adaptation of a King novel. You can read my review here.
The fantastical elements are present in all of the films mentioned above, but King’s novellas, in particular, lean away from horror. This may be why adapting them often results in quality dramatic films rather than genre horror pictures. The Life of Chuck is a quality drama with a strong cast, and, much like the Yorgos Lanthimos film Kinds of Kindness from earlier this year, it is a triptych story.
One fun thing about watching triptych pieces is that, upon leaving the theater, you and your friends can make a snap judgment about which parts were the best. For example, with Kinds of Kindness, I quickly shouted, “1, 3, 2!” ready to defend my ranking, knowing full well it might change upon my next viewing since each story was as good as the others. With The Life of Chuck, the first story is so strong and engaging that it will undoubtedly remain my favorite upon multiple rewatches. The second story has so much heart and charm, making it a solid second. However, the third and final act is such a drop-off in the quality of acting, script, and visuals that it almost angers me.
In most films like Barry Lyndon and every biopic ever made, child actors portraying our adult protagonist are used primarily in the first act. Not in The Life of Chuck. This film is told in reverse—no spoiler alert needed, as they market it this way. After a brilliant, intriguing, visually stunning, and well-acted opening with Chiwetel Ejiofor and Karen Gillan that ends so poignantly I was on the verge of tears, the film transitions to what can only be described as Tom Hiddleston auditioning to play Gene Kelly in a future biopic of the dancer. Hiddleston gets to interact playfully with newcomers Annalise Basso and Taylor Gordon.
When the third act arrived, I was overly hopeful, but my hopes were dashed as I sat through what seemed to be the longest act. It involved mostly interactions with a grandfather, played almost cartoonishly by Mark Hamill, and child actors Benjamin Pajak, Cody Flanagan, and Jacob Tremblay—all younger versions of Hiddleston’s “Chuck” character.
This final act drags on with an “afterschool special” energy and never comes close to achieving either the charm of the second act or the cosmic existential dread of the first. Plainly stated, this film fizzled out and left me wondering what could have been.
Oh, and for any Marvel fans, you get to see Loki, Mordo, and Nebula share the screen, so there’s also that.