[SPOILERS INCLUDED]
Wednesday, Nov. 3, was the opening night of the 45th annual Denver Film Festival. The opening night red carpet and film showing was held at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, part of the Denver Performing Arts Complex.
This year, the lineup at DFF 45 will include over 200-plus films, including selections from CineLatinx, CinemaQ, Italian Showcase, Red Carpet Selection, Virtual Reality and others. During the opening night Red Carpet Presentation, there was a pre-show reception with filmmakers, accredited press, Denver Film members, and festival goers.
The opening Red Carpet Presentation film for the Denver Film Festival was James Gray’s “Armageddon Time,” a coming-of-age dramedy. The film has stellar performances by Jeremy Strong, Anne Hathaway, Anthony Hopkins and Michael Banks Repeta. The film is based on the real-life experiences in Gray’s personal life through an autofiction lens.
“Armageddon Time” is a candid look into the imperfect American family through the lens of a child with a run time of 115 minutes. Taking place in Brooklyn, the film follows sixth grader Paul Graff (Repeta) as his family and school life shift beneath his feet. Paul consistently feels ostracized by his own family and those in his life. He wants to be a visual artist in a family of non-creative individuals.
Outside of the relationship he has with his grandfather (Hopkins), Paul’s only friend is fellow sixth grader Johnny Davis (Jaylin Webb). If Paul isn’t getting yelled at by his family at home during dinner, he and Johnny are getting in trouble or publicly humiliated by their teacher at school.
Though it felt like a stereotyped trope at times, the relationship between Paul and his grandfather was overall wholesome and the audience can tell the impact Gray’s grandfather had on his life and his decision to write “Armageddon Time.” Paul’s grandfather seemed to be the one figure in his life keeping him grounded yet passionate.
It was hard to watch the way Johnny was treated throughout the movie’s runtime. At times, the treatment felt unnecessary to the way Johnny’s character was written in the script. His detachment from the movie itself felt like a byproduct of being underwritten. Paul’s brother, Ted, also felt underwritten at times and two-dimensional. Another reason why Johnny’s character came off as underdeveloped was due to the pacing of the movie in relation to the plot. Despite these flaws with the scriptwriting, Jaylin Webb delivers a beautiful performance as Johnny.
On the topic of the movie’s lack of cohesiveness to the plot, there isn’t much of a solidified plot with resolution in “Armageddon Time.” Instead, it feels more like a glimpse into someone’s day-to-day life in their shoes. The pacing ended up making some of the necessary messages in the film fall flat and come off in a pretentious manner.
Jeremy Strong’s portrayal of the father was a polarizing performance that felt overwhelming at times. The father is established as volatile from the very beginning. Paul is continuously fearful of confronting his father anytime he gets in trouble due to the physical and verbal abuse he experiences. The only emotions we see in Strong’s performance are abusive anger or monotonous consoling. His performance was visceral and heart-wrenching.
“Armageddon Time” leaves the audience unsatisfied as the credits roll. There is no discernible ending to the movie, which fits well with the nature of its contents. It leaves the audience wondering what’s next for Paul and his family, an interpretive ending that was purposeful. A lot of what happens in this movie is frustrating to watch; it’s extremely real at times and that makes the nuance of the viewing a lot more convoluted.
Overall, “Armageddon Time” is a middling retrospective of childhood with melancholic regret and realistic pain. It takes the audience on a ride through the ups and downs of family dysfunction and traumas.
Overall Rating: 3/5
