I love Batman; I always have. My parents used to joke that my first word was Batman. My love for the character runs so deep that I know if I made a film it would be unwatchable I would focus too much on every single detail out of love. But as a film, as a narrative, that love would be misguided and bring down every other aspect of it.
I only share this because that’s how 5-25-77 felt. It's like a love letter to the director's youth, but one so stuffed to the brim with moments, some heartwarming, some excessive, but all contributing to an overlong runtime that has far too many ideas and far too many threads.
The effects are endearing, but at times they feel excessive and end up often feeling like tape trying to hold everything together. There are plenty of moments of schmaltz, but a lot of it works. There’s a maybe twenty-minute stretch of the movie with Austin Pendleton that I found genuinely great, and even though a lot of it feels like wish fulfillment and a revision of his life, it can often win you over with the sheer earnestness of the whole thing.
The lead in John Francis Daley fluctuates throughout, but by the end, he’s very good. Colleen Camp is fabulous in basically all her scenes, particularly one where she pleads the importance of Pat in his siblings' lives, and Emmi Chen stands out as well, bringing a softness and warmth to every scene. Austin Pendleton is the absolute standout.
It’s far from perfect, but at the end of the day, it’s an admirable attempt, and at the risk of sounding corny, it feels like the thing so many of us on this app wish they did.
I love Batman; I always have. My parents used to joke that my first word was Batman. My love for the character runs so deep that I know if I made a film it would be unwatchable I would focus too much on every single detail out of love. But as a film, as a narrative, that love would be misguided and bring down every other aspect of it.
I only share this because that’s how 5-25-77 felt. It's like a love letter to the director's youth, but one so stuffed to the brim with moments, some heartwarming, some excessive, but all contributing to an overlong runtime that has far too many ideas and far too many threads.
The effects are endearing, but at times they feel excessive and end up often feeling like tape trying to hold everything together. There are plenty of moments of schmaltz, but a lot of it works. There’s a maybe twenty-minute stretch of the movie with Austin Pendleton that I found genuinely great, and even though a lot of it feels like wish fulfillment and a revision of his life, it can often win you over with the sheer earnestness of the whole thing.
The lead in John Francis Daley fluctuates throughout, but by the end, he’s very good. Colleen Camp is fabulous in basically all her scenes, particularly one where she pleads the importance of Pat in his siblings' lives, and Emmi Chen stands out as well, bringing a softness and warmth to every scene. Austin Pendleton is the absolute standout.
It’s far from perfect, but at the end of the day, it’s an admirable attempt, and at the risk of sounding corny, it feels like the thing so many of us on this app wish they did.
