Review by Alex Moore  | Interview with Directors: Tyler Nilson & Michael Schwartz by Alex Moore

Think about your childhood. Do you ever feel like you are transplanting yourself back into the mind of a kid? Perhaps, there is a part in each of us, that never grows up or longs to live life, perpetually, as a youngster. Above all else, dreams are what we wish we could turn into a reality and the breeding ground seems to take place in our formative years.

There are some people who never, truly lose their child brain. While it might seem like a problem or a symptom of major dysfunction, in some cases, it is not a matter of choice and is not a total imposition. One such example is in a man by the name of Zack Gottsagen. His real-life story is on hand, as Zak, in “The Peanut Butter Falcon.” When I say this, I do not mean that we are seeing a movie based on actual events, but we ARE watching a young man attempt to, essentially, play as himself in a film. Many would say that THIS is the toughest role for anyone to play, yet Mr. Gottsagen comes through with great charm and apparent, natural ease.

Joining Zak on his adventure is Tyler, played by Shia LaBeouf (“Borg vs McEnroe”). Their relationship plays out like a classic, Mark Twain novel, namely ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.’ The turning point occurs when one character makes the sudden realization that the two of them are not mere companions, with different, ultimate goals, but, rather, kindred spirits who were fortunate to find each other and can share their own, unique experiences on the road of life and grow as individuals. You might say that they are giving each other the chance to “spread their wings and fly,” but, perhaps, at an unsafe speed or height, given what they seem to be working with.

As a kid, you might recall who you viewed as your enemies or “bad” people, but then, once you are older, you discover that YOU are more like those individuals and that they were not really “bad,” but simply an antagonist to your protagonist. Fulfilling this role, here, is Eleanor, played by Dakota Johnson (the “Fifty Shades” trilogy). Ironically, Johnson is positioning herself to expand as an actress and a project such as this one represents more than we might even know.

I can remember, as all of us can, who I wanted to be when I was little. In the case of Zak, that would be ‘The Salt Water Redneck,’ a professional wrestler, played by Thomas Haden Church (“Hellboy”). Alongside he, are real-life wrestlers Mick Foley (as Jacob) and Jake “The Snake” Roberts (as Sam). Even if you do not know who these people are, they still bring great credibility to the movie and, no doubt, had their share of personal contributions, which could be helpful to the overall story.

Rounding out the cast are: Bruce Dern (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”) as Carl, John Hawkes (“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”) as Duncan and Jon Bernthal (“Baby Driver”) as Mark.

You may have noticed that the focus has been much more about the people of the story, compared to the story, itself. I have said, for years, that movies can be divided as ones that are plot-driven and ones that are character-driven. Typically, a movie that lacks big funding tends to be more character-driven, either by necessity or by the deliberate direction of the filmmakers involved. In this case, that decision was up to Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, who also co-wrote the screenplay. The project took time to get off the ground, but the final product seems to have been worth the wait.

As great as all the casting choices of familiarity were, there are two, specific roles that stood out, for me, and they were portrayed by people I had never seen before. You might spot them in: a dry goods store or out by a river, just for your information. If you miss them, you are not paying attention and this is a film worth paying attention to.

The primary characters have few opportunities to grab us with depth, especially outside of Tyler. In other words, the present moments take precedence and the final outcome can only be connected to that. One character, in particular, did not bring as much to the movie as one might have hoped for. While it might be in the limitations of the film, itself, it could also be due to the limitations of the actress. When somebody reminds you of someone else, whom you have never had great affection for, in the same line of work, you begin to wonder what the future could actually hold for that person. Only time will tell.

For many spectators, the way you open and the way you close are the most important aspects of a movie. “The Peanut Butter Falcon” is memorable for the way it begins and the way it ends, but one side is more intriguing and engaging and the other is a bit of a letdown and feels incomplete. Who knows why, but as I have learned, over the years, sometimes, a script can only be or do so much. At the end of the day, so to speak, I believe this film DID almost as much as it could do. Symbolically, an image in the wrestling ring, which looks as outrageous as an ant hoisting a plank, but is also as real as cancer, seems to add up to the total summation of this movie. I am content with that picture and I think the filmmakers ought to be, as well.

Directors: Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz
Screenwriters: Nilson and Schwartz
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, Zack Gottsagen, John Hawkes, Bruce Dern, Jon Bernthal and Thomas Haden Church
Music: Zachary Dawes, Noah Pikelny, Jonathan Sadoff and Gabe Witcher
Distributor: Roadside Attractions
Release: March 9th, 2019 (SXSW Film Festival) and August 9th, 2019 (United States)