Life of Chuck, The (United States, 2024)

This is going to be a shorter review than the movie possibly deserves but there’s a reason for that. Part of the greatness of experiencing The Life of Chuck comes from watching it unfold and discerning all the connective tissue. Revealing too much would strip the movie of its impact. This is the rare kind of film that is best approached with as little knowledge as possible. For me, it evoked Forrest Gump and Amelie but those connections are more spiritual than tactile. The Life of Chuck also recalls some of author Stephen King’s other non-horror stories (Stand By Me, The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile) but only in a general sense not in specific details. If you see it with a friend, you’re in good shape because the post-movie conversation could last as long as the actual film. Yet, for all its possibilities and its non-chronological structure, The Life of Chuck isn’t a hard sell. One doesn’t have to think too hard to put the pieces together and, in the end, it may mean something very different to each viewer.

So here are the bare-bones details that I will reveal, keeping spoilers to an absolute minimum. The movie is divided into three acts that trace the life of the title character, Charles Krantz, a.k.a. “Chuck” (played as an adult by Tom Hiddleston), backwards through his time on Earth. The approach ultimately makes sense and, when the movie was over, I found myself agreeing with writer/director Mike Flanagan’s decision to retain King’s structure. It generates a sense of mystery early in the film and leaves many small surprises (including wonderful performances from Mark Hamill and Mia Sara) for the second half. Who is Chuck? That’s one of the questions asked early and often during the course of the film. And a great deal of the running time is devoted to providing a full answer.

The film opens with an apocalyptic chapter that allows us to focus on the importance of technology to our lives. The narrative implies that the characters are living in the “end times” (in a literal, not religious, sense) with the clock that spans the universe’s life cycle about to strike midnight. What happens to our modern society when the Internet goes down? When cell service no longer functions? When the power grid collapses? When ghostly images of Chuck appear seemingly everywhere? Those things happen relatively early during The Life of Chuck and I will say no more.

Although Hiddleston is given first billing, his version of Chuck is front-and-center only during one of the three acts (the shortest, as it happens – more of an interlude between the two more significant ones). This may be Chuck’s movie but it’s not necessarily Hiddleston’s. Other actors play the character at different ages: Cody Flanagan at 7, Benjamin Pajak at 11, and Jacob Tremblay at 17. There are some wonderful supporting performances from Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillan, Hamill and Sara, Carl Lumbly, Matthew Lillard, and Heather Langenkamp. Some of those names are blasts from the past and do some of their career-best work here. Nick Offerman narrates, channeling Wilford Brimley.

There’s something deeply human about this movie and what it says about how we approach life from its giddy, optimistic early days (the film has two great dance sequences – one in the middle of a street and the other in a junior high gymnasium to the tune of Steve Winwood’s “Gimme Some Lovin’”) to its eventual decline. Yes, there are ghost story elements and a science fiction riff but those things fit organically into the story rather than distracting from it. This isn’t genre fiction. Flanagan’s adaptation sticks close to King’s original story (published as part of the If It Bleeds anthology released in 2020) while fleshing out details and developing its own unique cinematic identity. This is the third consecutive King-authored production Flanagan has developed (following 2017’s Gerald’s Game and 2019’s Doctor Sleep) so there’s a creative synergy at work.

When it premiered at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival, The Life of Chuck took home the audience award. More than anything, that’s an indication of the film’s widespread appeal (unlike many other prestigious festival awards, this one tends to be meaningful). Although a huge box office windfall isn’t expected, this is the kind of movie that deserves to find an audience either in theaters or once it reaches a streaming home. Watching The Life of Chuck, I was inspired to remember how wonderful it can be to find a movie that offers the thrill of discovery and the comfort of real emotions. That’s such a rare combination these days and when a film unlocks the secret, it deserves to be seen and lauded for the accomplishment.

Life of Chuck, The (United States, 2024)