The Wasteland Reviewer

The Life of Chuck (2025) Written Review

Who is Charles Krantz? Why does this man matter? Why was his life so important? There is a lot of mystery around this new film, The Life of Chuck, coming from horror auteur Mike Flanagan and adapted from the novella from literary legend Stephen King. There is a good enough sample of work at this point to show that Flanagan is one of the best in the game at translating King’s work to the big screen. But up until this point, these adaptations have been focusing on the horror works of this author. Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile) and Rob Reiner (Stand By Me) have translated the more dramatic and human works of King so well…but The Life of Chuck now puts Flanagan in that conversation. Beautiful. Moving. Mysterious. Dynamic. Artful. Creative. Engrossing. Challenging. The Life of Chuck is all these things. 

But what is The Life of Chuck? That is a hard question to answer without spoiling much of the journey. There is a looming mystery around the film that is one of the strongest elements of the cinematic experience. But this is a film with three specific acts that are played in a certain order that expands that mystery and weaves the thematic work of the film in. As each act ends, the audience has a bigger understanding of what this film all means. Each of these acts work in their own way from a thematic perspective, genre perspective, and filmmaking perspective. Each act builds connections and dynamics that are compelling, empathetic, and engaging. Narration is utilized to thread this film together cohesively (well done by the iconic voice of Nick Offerman). The film offers apocalyptic/disaster film elements, pseudo-musical, and coming-of-age films which somehow all come together to sell the story of Chuck. When the film comes to its fantastical and dynamic ending, you realize what the whole experience truly means. Life. Death. The world we create in our own mind from all the experiences in our life. The relationships that we had and cherished along the way. The people who have crafted our experiences, journey, and personality. You might not see the forest through the trees until that final moment happens, but Flanagan makes sure that the journey is equally compelling and engrossing to get you there. 

What does Flanagan bring to the table from a directorial standpoint? No matter what the current genre of the act is, Flanagan finds a way to craft a dreamlike, dynamic, and fantastical atmosphere that is otherworldly and engrossing. The work that The Newton Brothers do with their score reinforces this atmosphere and feeling that is fantastical and dynamic. There is so much heart and soul in this film that it fills every moment with emotion. This film will put you on the verge of tears at any given moment. There is something so beautiful in this film that challenges you and offers such a unique and creative perspective on what the world around us can mean. There are a few key moments in the film centered around dancing that are just joyous, creative, and incredibly crafted. There are a few film scenes in modern cinema that strike such a chord. Flanagan shows that he can take an optimistic and hopeful turn in a project…but this should not be such a surprise. Even in his horror projects, Flanagan stands out by finding the humanity in any project…The Life of Chuck just happens to be a beautiful love letter to our humanity. 

How does this ensemble bring this film to life? You might expect Tom Hiddleston to be the star of this film, but he is only in parts of the film (as the title character). His physicality is the most impressive element of his performance…he can REALLY dance. But there is soulfulness and stoicism in Hiddleston’s performance that makes him so specific. Chiwetel Ejiofor and Karen Gillan anchor a whole section of this film with their performances. Ejiofor is inquisitive and dynamic, and Gillan’s performance is pregnant with emotion. Their dynamic together is beautiful. Mia Sara (of Ferris Bueller fame) delivers one of the most honest, beautiful, genuine performances as Chuck’s grandmother. She is beautiful inside and out. Sara lights up every scene she is in. Mark Hamill is gruff yet wise. His presence shines like Chuck’s grandfather. Both of their characters have impressive influences on Chuck and the path he will eventually take. Then you have the whole range of Flanagan’s crew. Carl Lumbly, Rahul Kohli, Annalise Basso, Kate Siegel, Samantha Sloyan, Jacob Tremblay, and others each make their own impact along the way. But you have the impressive turn of young Benjamin Pajak (who gets the most mileage as Chuck in the film) offers up such an engrossing, dynamic, and heartwarming performance. 

So…what is The Life of Chuck? This is a beautiful showcase of humanity and life itself. The journeys we go on through life are compelling and engaging. Flanagan flexes his directorial skills and ability to translate King’s vision with this film. This is a towering achievement of what film can be and what storytelling can portray. There is a richness and depth to what this film can achieve. Few films are so unique and dynamic while still capturing the humanity of it all.  The Life of Chuck is simply…profound.