5-25-77

Right, well I have to admit that I was definitely harboring some hopes and expectations for this 2022 comedy drama from writer and director Patrick Read Johnson as I sat down to watch it.

And now 132 minutes later, I sit here with an overwhelming sense of 'was that really it?' and of having somewhat squandered 132 minutes of my life on something that most certainly didn't live up to what I was expecting, not even by a longshot.

"5-25-77" seemed like such an interesting movie, especially for a life-long fantasy and "Star Wars" fan such as myself. And there were definitely things to identify with here in the main character of Pat Johnson. However, the script's storyline and narrative just somewhat fell short of providing me with much entertainment.

The acting performances in "5-25-77" were quite good.

Sure, the movie was watchable, but this is by no means a movie that impressed me. Nor is it a movie that I will ever return to watch a second time.

My rating of of "5-25-77" lands on a four out of ten stars.

I honestly did not know this movie existed. Despite people use physical media less and less. I still do. I actually still use my local library to look for titles I've never seen. Something anyone who has memories of video stores remember doing and looking at the box cover and renting the movie to see for themselves if the movie was as good as the box art.

I have to say after watching this movie nearly 20 years in the making, it is a good movie. I understand others who complain it's too long. But I think its just right for what it is. It at minimum is a companion piece to "The Fabelmans" if not superior to it.

I'll end with do check out if your local library still has Blu-rays and DVDs to rent. When you do, you are supporting your local library and actually ensuring your librarians will be funded if the community is using resources they provide.

Support your local library.

Aggravatingly uneven. I guess that's how it struck me. I was in high school when Star Wars (no bloody 4, 5, or 6) first came out and I was a big sci-fi nerd, so this movie I felt like this movie should have resonated with me and it really didn't. Austin Pendleton was great, but he always is. Maybe I'm just too old to relate to the teenage characters, but I don't generally have a problem in that area. I was a bit put off but some of the jump-cut sequences and I get that's technique that's used much more than it was in the past. And there was a general lack of focus. Too many sub-plots were competing for screen time and as a result some of them were left unresolved. Maybe the fact that it took 13+ years for the movie to be completed had something to do with this.

It just didn't sit right with me.

This film was shown at my local art-house theater tonight, and it far exceeded my expectations - I'd seen an earlier version a few years ago and really didn't know what to expect. This is an indie gem, a coming- of-age tale built around the release of the first Star Wars film on May 25, 1977. The filmmaker weaves the lead character's lovable, laughable attempts at Super-8 filmmaking into his high school loves and losses and his breakthrough experiences with other films of the era in a way that is engaging, entertaining and thought-provoking from start to finish. The actors are terrific and very professional, the attention to detail is outstanding, and the production values are top notch. Highly recommended.

Last night I did something I thought I would never do: watch the movie 5-25-77. The reason I didn't expect to watch it was because it had languished in production hell for so long I had honestly given up hope of its ever having a wide release.

My first memory of this film was in early 2006. I knew the actor (John Francis Daley) from Freaks and Geeks, and the plot of the movie seemed interesting, so I began to follow its progress. Carrie Fisher was originally supposed to play the mother (she appears briefly, and vaguely, in the first teaser trailer), and Christopher Lloyd was originally cast as Herb Lightman (he appears in the second trailer). For all these reasons, I was really eager to see this movie. Fisher was then replaced by Colleen Camp, and Lloyd by Austin Pendleton, but I still eagerly anticipated this movie.

Back then IMDB still had messageboards, and I would visit this one every now and then. The director, Patrick Read Johnson, would occasionally drop by to give status updates and interact with other users on this site. I think he even answered one of my questions one time. He assured us that, despite various setbacks, the movie would eventually be released. So I waited. But as the years went by I started to lose hope. The movie changed names a couple of times, was screened at a festival here or there, but other than that nothing. I would check back every year or so, but no progress appeared to have been made. I had resigned myself to the fact that I would never see this movie. Until late November 2022 when I said 'Why not?' and I checked again, expecting nothing at all. And to my surprise, there it was, available to stream. After waiting for over 16 years, I would finally be able to watch 5-25-77.

Other reviewers have already described the plot and offered their critique, so I won't delve into that here. Suffice to say that I thought it was enjoyable, charming and funny. The acting was good and the characters interesting. I particularly enjoyed the performance of Steve Coulter as Patrick's friend and sometimes-reluctant actor in Patrick's movies.

In short, after waiting so long for this movie to be released, I was really glad to finally be able to watch it, and I was not disappointed. Kudos to Patrick for not giving up. You persevered and released your labor of love so everyone can now have the opportunity to watch it. In the movie, your younger self worked passionately on movies and achieved his goals despite setbacks and hardships. And the same can be said of you working hard on completing 5-25-77. It may not have been easy, but you did it. Well done!