The 4:30 Movie

When I was younger, the movie theater was like a church to me, where I would often go and have experiences that would shape me into adulthood. What was special then was that you would go to see a movie, and after it was over, sneak into other movies, spending your days watching magic on the big screen. That magic is gone now, as reserved seats have made it much harder to spend the day in the theater like that. Kevin Smith, like me, spent a lot of time doing the same thing—immersing ourselves in worlds we may never get to visit. With his new film, The 4:30 Movie, he takes us back to one of those days, and while it has its moments, it doesn’t quite capture the magic it wants to.

Brian David (Austin Zajur) has done it. After pulling a Houdini on the girl he’s smitten with, he calls her up and asks her to the movies. After some playful banter, Melody Barnegat (Siena Agudong) agrees to meet him at 4:30. Now, Brian just has to make it there. Before that date, Brian has movie plans with his friends, Belly (Reed Northrup) and Burny (Nicholas Cirillo), as they follow their ritualistic tradition and head for a day at the theater. Things get off to a rocky start, as Burny is not a fan of Melody and gives Brian a hard time for meeting her. This does little to put out the flame that Brian has for Melody, but soon their day has other problems as Belly gets kicked out of the theater before the movie even starts. This is not a big problem, as the guys have a way to get him back in, but soon the situation with Melody becomes too much, causing a rift that might be too large for Burny and Brian to get over. True friendships don’t die, and things all come together for Brian and Melody’s movie date.

Some are calling The 4:30 Movie Smith’s most personal movie yet, but Smith’s films have always been reflections of his own life. Here, he dives back into his past to deliver something that feels like Mallrats through a John Hughes lens. Diving into the comfortable waters of nostalgia, Smith delivers a film filled with dialogue, while also trying to make something heartfelt and a little sweet. What I really liked was that the world feels lived-in and authentic, as Smith gets the details right, taking us right back to 1986.

The 4:30 Movie certainly has its charms and even some laughs, but even with its short runtime, it runs out of gas at around the one hour mark. This is for sure one of Smith’s better films, and while it isn’t really deep, it is honest, and that goes a long way for me. To achieve that, Smith really mines his teenage years, and if you are a fan, you will recognize several of the stories you have heard him tell. The cast is good, filled with some young up-and-comers, but it also has plenty of cameos throughout, featuring Smith’s friends and stars from his previous movies. This is definitely one of Smith’s sweeter films to date, showcasing his strengths and serving as a love letter to the theaters of the ’80s, which will bring back warm feelings for those who lived it.