The End Of Oak Street feels like director David Robert Mitchell attempting to prove himself as a blockbuster director, a director who can reliably put out a summer smash-hit. Though not his first film, Mitchell raised to success after the release of 2014’s It Follows, a low-budget horror feature which become a critical and commercial success. His follow-up, being released 4 years later, Under the Silver Lake, did not fair as well in either regard, and though gaining a cult following years after release, it seemed to stagger this talented director’s career. Eight years later, and he is back, with a clearly more commercial, Spielberg-inspired family adventure film. Usually making a director go from small independent features to big blockbuster is a gamble, and can feel like a loss of creative vision, but it truly works here. The End of The Oak Street is a breathe of fresh air, and harkens back to a simpler time in family blockbusters. The End of the Oak Street follows the events of a neighbourhood which is sent back in time to the Jurassic era, with a central family attempting to stick together, survive and find a way home.
Dinosaur movies have been a genre that has long needed more entries outside of the Jurassic franchise, a franchise that feels like it has a monopoly on the very concept. Jurassic Park and other classic Spielberg features feel like the main inspirations of Mitchell here, with the film doing a excellent job at recreating that classic Amblin feel. There is a charm and simplicity to the film, but also a compelling amount of realism and maturity in its themes and how brutal the film can get. The movies that it is irking off are charming and classics, but they also have a level of brutality and maturity to them that a lot of family films lack nowadays. The End of Oak Street gives you all the child-like wonder of the mystery and the dinosaurs, alongside a healthy amount of humour, but there is also some engaging use of gore, with the dinosaurs genuinely feeling like a threat.
The character work is also schmaltzy but honest and truthful at the same time, Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor are given a lot of material to chew on in their relationship dynamic. Hathaway, who has had a very busy year, easily walks away with the most memorable performance. There is a deep message around the loss of identity once you have become a parent and the sacrifices you make to provide for your children.
The movie falters slightly in character decisions, with the movie falling into obvious pitfalls of character’s becoming dumber to keep the film going, and to place them into danger. Maisy Stella and Christian Convery are easily the weakest part of the central cast, playing the daughter and son of the leads, with the script giving them some of the weakest lines. There is a lack of explanation into how the characters have time travelled, which may be a detriment for some interested viewers, and the way the film wraps up these science-fiction elements is very sloppy. However, the film also features one of the most brilliant and shocking sequences of the year, a twist that truly leaves you on the edge of your seat. The pure power of the film comes from the lean 90 minute runtime, it is a fast blast of a film. It has an excellent amount of set up, with the actual action happening as fast as you would want.
Michael Giacchino has become one of the hardest working composers of the modern day, with him doing scores for films like The Batman, the Mission Impossible franchise, Spider-Man’s MCU features and even the Jurassic World franchise. Here, he really brings the Amblin inspirations to life in his score that mixes the whimsical adventure feel with a level of pure mystery and a bit of hidden sinister nature. This score really brings the movie together, and helps to blend the various elements together. The fast paced nature of the film would not work as well if it was not for the excellent score.
The End of Oak Street is a great return to the big screen for David Robert Mitchell. It might not hit the same heights as his prior works, but it does not feel as commercialised as you would expect. It is filled with personality, and holds its inspirations in a honest manner. It has been a long time since a film has been able to so perfectly feel like a classic 80s film, but Oak Street has knocked it out of the park. There is some pitfalls with character writing, but it more than makes up for its dumb character decisions through its pure chaotic dinosaur action, a must watch for sure.
Rhys Reviews 
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