With The Monkey, The Institute, and The Long Walk, as well as the upcoming The Running Man and It: Welcome to Derry, 2025 is proving to be another huge year for Stephen King. Now arriving in cinemas thanks to writer-director Mike Flanagan, The Life of Chuck adds to this epic release storm.
After breaking into the cinematic field with Hush and Oculus, Flanagan pushed through to a wider audience with Ouija: Origin of Evil, a film that reminded us that prequels and sequels can be just as good, if not better than, their predecessors when done right. He went on to prove his Stephen King adapting capability with the highly anticipated Doctor Sleep, earning a stamp of approval from King himself. It’s a strong pairing that will continue right through the cycle of this movie, and straight into the in-development TV version of The Dark Tower.
The film tells the life story of Charles “Chuck” Krantz via three contrasting yet well-balanced acts, shown in reverse order, and is narrated by Nick Offerman. It opens up in a universe populated by characters who can’t figure out why the world is ending so abruptly, and full of signs saying “Thanks for your service, Chuck”. Marty Anderson (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Felicia Gordon (Karen Gillan) delicately move around this mystery whilst asking some of life’s biggest questions. The film instantly shows off its immense cast, with welcome appearances from David Dastmalchian, Matthew Lillard, Rahul Kohli, and Harvey Guillén, to name just a few. This act can feel very secretive, but fear not, because its significance will make itself known throughout.
Act Two belongs to Tom Hiddleston, as we see the hard-working accountant Chuck on his way to another meeting. In this moment, something takes hold of him as he hears a drummer in the street, and alongside Janice Halliday (Annalise Basso), he starts to dance, and just can’t stop. It’s a freeing and crucial segment for the character as he tunes into his lifelong joy of dancing. Ultimately, it’s the heart of the movie.
Moving into Act One, the recurring Flanagan collaborators continue to rule; Kate Siegel, Samantha Sloyan, Mark Hamill, and Mia Sara hold up the foundations of the narrative whilst Jacob Tremblay and Benjamin Pajak superbly lay down the formative years of our protagonist. Flanagan is known for bringing back actors who dominated in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, allowing them to show off their brilliant acting palette. He did it before with Henry Thomas, and has done it again with Mark Hamill and Mia Sara. To add to all of this, at this point the film fuses in its supernatural subplot, one which asks questions not only of the characters onscreen, but of the viewers that witness it.
Backed with incredible cinematography from Eben Bolter, an otherworldly soundtrack from the Newton Brothers, and a stacked to the rafters array of outstanding actors, The Life of Chuck reaffirms the ever-reaching creative ability of Stephen King and Mike Flanagan; both could cover any genre that they wanted to and bring out nothing but the absolute best in it. The Life of Chuck is a multitude of emotion and meaning. It’s an important reminder that no matter what happens in life, we should always embrace the little moments and never forget our creativity.
THE LIFE OF CHUCK is in cinemas now.
