THE LIFE OF CHUCK

TIFF 24 REVIEW BY: DARREN ZAKUS

DATE: SEPTEMBER 9, 2024

RATING: 5 out of 5

The Life of Chuck is a marvelous film that ranks among the best Stephe King adaptation of all time thanks to outstanding writing and direction from Mike Flanagan that brings to life a profoundly moving, life affirming story featuring one exceptional ensemble cast led by the spectacular Tom Hiddleston and Benjamin Pajak.

Mike Flanagan is no stranger to Stephen King adaptations, having previously adapted both Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep, while cementing himself as one of the most exciting writers and directors currently working in the horror genre with critically acclaimed miniseries like The Haunting of Hill House and The Fall of the House of Usher. While his previous works have been full of shocking moments that will scare audiences to death and brutal (and sometimes gory) deaths, Flanagan’s films have all featured moving and character driven stories that instantly made audiences empathize for his characters, upping the stakes for the story and sometimes resulting in heartbreak when they met an untimely death. Even though it is based on a short story written by King, himself a legend in the horror genre, The Life of Chuck is not a horror film, but instead a character drama about Charles “Chuck” Kranz, an ordinary man, set during three different times in Chuck’s life. It’s more akin in tone to some of King’s most famous works like The Shawshank Redemption and Stand By Me, giving Flanagan a rich narrative to work with. And the end result is nothing short of a masterful film capturing an earnest warmth and existential exploration of ordinary yet memorable moments in life, the finality of life and making the most of our time alive in one of the best King film adaptations of all time.

Both King and Flanagan are excellent writers, so it comes as no surprise that the screenplay for The Life of Chuck is fantastic, but nothing can prepare you for how emotionally moving the film is. Told in three acts in reverse chronological order, we begin the film with an apocalyptic collapse in modern technology that begins the end of the world with mysterious messaging thanking an individual named Charles “Chuck” Krantz for years of service, but none of the characters seem to know who he is. With the mystery building in the first act while beautifully exploring human connection during the end of the world, Flanagan carefully draws the audience into the world of the film before introducing them to Chuck in the second act. The second and third act revolve around Chuck, his childhood, and it’s here where Flanagan reveals his grand plan. 

During the second act, the themes of the film begin to ring through and come full circle in the third act. It’s all about embracing life and making the most of everyday moments. An earnest and warm feeling that washes over the audience quickly washes over viewers in the latter acts as the importance of embracing the small moments in life is explored, while never shying away from life’s darker moments and the fragility of human life with a true vulnerability in the writing. At the same time, the pieces fall into place to explain the events of the first act, transforming the audience’s perspective of the film and help land the film’s magnificent ending. Bursting with heart that will fill viewers with absolute joy, make them smile and absolutely break them in the film’s final beautiful moments with the final reveal, Flanagan never falters with his writing for a second in The Life of Chuck, delivering yet another masterful King adaptation.

Over the course of all of his projects, Flanagan has worked with the same core cast of actors, and many of them return for The Life of Chuck. His wife Kate Siegel gives a wonderful performance as Chuck’s school teacher Miss Richards in a beautiful and pivotal moment in the third act, Samantha Sloyan who has been working with Flanagan since 2016 has a fun performance as Chuck’s dance teacher Miss Rohrbacher, and Rahul Kohli, Violet McGraw, Annalise Basso, Carl Lumbly and Heather Langenkamp return as well. Reuniting after not working with Flanagan is Karen Gillan who has a starring role in the film’s first act, and she shines in the entire act balancing the overwhelming uncertainty and emotion surrounding the end of the world as Felicia and her character’s relationship with her ex-husband portrayed by Chiwetel Ejiofor. Ejiofor himself is exquisite opposite Gillan, with the two of them developing the emotional undercurrent as their characters try to make sense of the strange events occurring. Mark Hamill is a standout as Chuck’s grandfather Albie in the third act, bringing an immense warmth to the film while also bringing mystery and a hint of darkness to the film with the secret his character is hiding.

But, the film belongs to the actors who portray Chuck. Tom Hiddleston is phenomenal as the adult iteration of Chuck in the second act, capturing the optimistic and caring ordinary individual with ease. From the dance sequence where he radiates excitement and an infectious energy, to the quieter moments where he walks around town conversing with Basso’s Janice, it's a moving performance that helps introduce the audience to the film’s heart that is introduced in the second act after the mystery of the first act. The third act sees both Jacob Tremblay and Cody Flanagan portraying Chuck at different ages, both of whom are great, but it is Benjamin Pajak who gets the best version of Chuck to play. Pajak gets to develop the character of Chuck that we had previously seen Hiddleston portray, instilling the character with an inquisitive nature and perseverance as he is forced to grow faster than most children and deal with death and adult life far sooner than his classmates. At the same time, Pajak is bursting with joy and youth as Chuck bonds over music and dancing with his grandmother and experiences his first crush at school. It’s a powerful performance from Pajak that, like the character, contains multitudes and captures the essence and spirit of King’s story and Flanagan’s screenplay at every turn.

Though, the one moment of the film that everyone is going to be talking about is that show stopping dance number in the film’s second act. Shot over the course of four days with each take running the routine from start to finish, Flanagan pays homage to dance in cinema with a number that tracks the evolution of dance through cinema with everything from the waltz to the flashy moves of Bob Fosse. Hiddleston and Basso nail the choreography, bringing a high energy to the entire sequence that is absolutely electrifying, while star Taylor Gordon composed the music for the sequence and played the drums throughout the scene, resulting in one phenomenal moment in the film that garnered thunderous applause at the world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend. Flanagan’s direction captures the sequence and ensures that none of the onset energy or talent of his cast is lost for a single second, resulting in one of the best scenes of the entire year. 

Every once in a while, there is a film that profoundly connects with audiences and takes them on an entertaining and moving journey, and Mike Flanagan has accomplished all of this and more with the spellbinding The Life of Chuck as he existentially explores life and mortality. Full of his signature character driven storytelling, audiences will be filled with joy as they are introduced to the life of Charles “Chuck” Krantz as the importance of embracing all of life’s moments is explored in one of the best Stephen King adaptations to ever grace the big screen. Led by an outstanding ensemble cast featuring incredible performances from Tom Hiddleston, Mark Hamill, Benjamin Pajak, Karen Gillan and Chiwetel Ejiofor and featuring one of the best dance sequences in recent memory, Mike Flanagan delivers yet another masterpiece in storytelling with The Life of Chuck that is unequivocally the best film of this year’s Toronto International Film Festival to date and one of the best films of the year!