Directed by Colin Trevorrow
Written by Gregg Hurwitz
Cast: Naomi Watts, Jaeden Lieberher, Jacob Tremblay, Sarah Silverman, Lee Pace, Maddie Ziegler, Dean Norris, Bobby Moynihan, Geraldine Hughes, Wass Stevens, Donnetta Lavinia Grays
Soundtrack: Michael Giacchino
Sometimes the world throws interesting parallels your way.
Just on a bare surface level, you could compare The Book of Henry to Gifted, in that they both center around highly intelligent children (albeit ENTIRELY different plots and tones), but the comparisons don’t end there. You’ve also got directors returning to more independent roots after not-so-great uber-mainstream projects (Amazing Spider-Man 1 & 2 for Marc Webb, Jurassic World for Colin Trevorrow), and two comediennes I don’t particularly care for in supporting roles (Jenny Slate and Sarah Silverman, respectively).
But hey, enough about me. The real question is whether or not The Book of Henry actually works (aka “Should we have any hope for Star Wars: Episode IX?”).
Well, apparently to the contrary of every published critic out there, I really dug this movie.
Is it perfect? No.
Is it “believable”? No.
Do I care? Obviously not.
I found the movie entertaining based on the performances, the story, the moral dilemmas, the beautiful Westchester setting, and the fact that it was unafraid to make bold narrative decisions (huge spoilers, can’t talk about it; have to see for yourself).
I’m usually the first to say “No” to a movie that so prominently features children, but Jaeden Lieberher is a wonderful young actor, as his turns in St. Vincent and Midnight Special will confirm, and he’s joined here by the critically-acclaimed Jacob Tremblay and even reality TV alumnus Maddie Ziegler as kid actors putting in good shifts.
Even before all that though, the movie won me over right away simply for having a main title sequence, which I was just thinking this week about how much I miss those (*cough*), but, again, enough about me.
I don’t know what else to say to convince people this is worth seeing, maybe I shouldn’t even try, but what I do know is that I found the movie heartwarming, funny, and intense, which is an odd combo, it’s a different combo, but, as I said before, I give Henry credit for taking risks, and for trying to do something at least somewhat original in these dark days of IP overload.
Maybe that’s not worth anything to you, but I appreciate it.
Rating: ★★★★☆