The End of Oak Street

Screened at Festival Theaters, Palm Springs, California

This new flick from David Robert Mitchell, an indie director I've enjoyed thus far via his films The Myth of the American Sleepover and the horror hit It Follows, was on my radar for seeing what he could do with nostalgia for one of the big studios. The dinosaur aspect I could care less for. I don't know, they just don't do it for me. Their existence in the first place is of course beyond comprehension and endlessly fascinating to us modern day folk, but in films, it's .... whatever.

The End of Oak Street is basically a big ol' scoop of vanilla ice cream. Even for a dinosaur flick. That doesn't mean it's bland, as I enjoyed this film from start to finish. Even when I felt scenes were going too long, it wasn't bothering me, as the story - as unexplained as it all is - was interesting enough to keep my attention. It's rather wacky, and truly doesn't provide much of a WHY, instead just focusing on the action of the moment. And fair enough, it works. Acting is sufficient, and even moves my tolerance of Anne Hathaway closer to the positive end of the spectrum. For years I couldn't stand her. I'm glad to put those days behind me, at least for now. Still, even this wacky, its a vanilla wacky. Not sure how else to describe it. It's not a criticism, just a description.

Mitchell did do well with the nostalgia hits. The descriptions you've heard about this being "Spielberg-ian" are quite true, but only to an extent. Knowing Mitchell, this definitely felt like "a Mitchell take on Spielberg" would be a more apt description. The setup is especially lovely. Not forced, not over-the-top. Just very D.R.M., and it served the film well.

The film accomplishes being the fun, mindless, comfy, vanilla, summer popcorn flick it set out to be, and yet I think it should have aimed higher. It needed an extra level, of something. Likely one that Warner Bros. - "masterminds" behind 2002's The Adventures of Pluto Nash starring Eddie Murphy - didn't want to "risk" providing a budget for. That may be the reason this is also rather forgettable, and can't foresee revisiting. Regardless, a light recommendation, with expectations in check.