The first reviews for Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck are coming out of the Toronto International Film Festival and, for the most part, they’re glowing. The movie has scored an impressive 80% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes from its first 10 views. This is perhaps not too surprising considering Flanagan’s impeccable record, which features no “rotten” projects at all.
Flanagan’s King adaptations have led the way for the director’s feature films, with Gerald’s Game scoring a 91% Tomatometer score, while Doctor Sleep scored 79% and has only seen its reputation grow over the last few years. But The Life of Chuck might be the highest scoring adaptation of them all once the film’s general reviews start to pile in. Certainly, those who have seen the movie during the TIFF have been mostly impressed with what they have seen. For instance, Collider‘s Jason Gorber felt it was one of the best Stephen King adaptations to date, giving the Tom Hiddleston-led drama 4.5 out of 5 stars:
Flanagan’s latest is simply a stunner. His finest film is a deeply heartfelt, glorious thing.
One consensus that is known by this point is that it’s not the average Stephen King movie. It’s apocalyptic, but not a frightfest. This, of course, shouldn’t prove to be a surprise for those who have read the author’s novella.
What Are Other Critics Saying About The Life of Chuck?
The Daily Beast‘s Nick Schager brought up the fact it’s not a King monster movie, e.g. It or Christine. But, he did mention that it’s frightening in a different way. After all, it does cover the end of a man’s life (then moves its way backwards through that life). In Schager’s words:
A film that’s as sweet as it is scary, and whose frights are the sort that come from all-too-relatable fears about being alone, being apart, and being unable to hold onto the people and memories that matter most.
That said, not every review cast crowns up The Life of Chuck. For instance, A.A. Dowd of IGN Movies called it a “glorified book on tape from a talented King superfan.” Not to mention, both positive and negative reviews have brought up the word “saccharine.”
Yet, one gets the feeling The Life of Chuck is a little more The Shawshank Redemption and a lot less Hearts in Atlantis. We’ll just have to see for ourselves when the movie is released, but for now it’s in search of a distributor. Perhaps news on that front will come sooner rather than later. The success of The Life Of Chuck will be yet another feather in the cap of Flanagan, which will put him in good stead as he prepares to embark on some of the biggest projects of his career, including his take on The Exorcist, and of course, his incredibly ambitious plans for King’s The Dark Tower.
