Kodachrome

So today was the day of watching small intimate indie films. Like I've said in a previous review, I'm digging through my list on Netflix trying to get rid of some of the films that have been on there for quite a long time. If I don't watch them now, I don't think I'm ever going to watch them.

Kodachrome was a film that I saw come onto Netflix earlier this year. I watched the trailer, liked everyone who was in it, and I knew I wanted to check it out. It just took me quite a long time to actually get to it. I didn't hear anything about this film prior to watching it besides the trailer and I doubt anybody will really be talking about this movie besides me. But I still think it's a movie worth a review.

Kodachrome follows the story of Matt (played by Jason Sudeikis). He is a record executive who is kind of down on his luck. He's divorced, he's struggling to keep his job, and the only way he can keep his job is to sign a new band to the record label he works for.

One day, a nurse by the name of Zoe (played by Elizabeth Olsen) shows up in his office and tells him that she works for his father Ben (played by Ed Harris), a famous photographer. She tells Matt that Ben is dying and he wants to make a trip out to Kansas to the last place where Kodachrome film is developed.

Matt is reluctant to go on the trip but is convinced to go along when Ben's manager (played by Dennis Haysbert) says he can get Matt a meeting with the band he needs to sign, but only if he goes on the trip.

 What follows is a road trip movie about this father and son discussing their differences, their grievances, and figuring out if there's a way they could ever really forgive each other. Zoe comes along and a romance starts to bloom between her and Matt.

If the movie sounds a little formulaic, its because it is. It is not a hard movie to predict what will happen and how characters will react to certain things, or if certain events will happen at certain times. I don't think that makes the movie bad necessarily, it's just not something incredibly new.

Part of the reason this movie works is really only because of the performances by the three main leads, Sudeikis, Olsen, and most notably Ed Harris.

I loved Jason Sudeikis on SNL. I think he is a really hilarious dude, but I am really enjoying the trend he's moving on now where he's taking a lot more serious roles. I absolutely love that Elizabeth Olsen is a thing beyong her work with the Marvel Cinematic Universe because she is a very good actor. The chemistry between those two is actually pretty great and it probably makes the movie a romantic movie if you're looking for a date night movie.

And dear lord, Ed Harris is phenomenal in this movie. I seriously forgot I was watching a performance and really saw Harris as this "miserable bastard" dying of cancer in the backseat of this antique car. He looks so emaciated and the way he moves is just so believable that I seriously forgot that this was Ed Harris performing for the majority of the movie.

 The three of them come together and make this really emotional and small intimate road trip film. Yes, a lot of the film is predictable. And there are some moments where I was taken a little bit out of it because people reacted in ways that I took a moment and really just thought that that's not what a person would do in that circumstance, it's only being done for dramatic effect.

But by the same token, I knew what the ending was going to be. I called the ending from a very early time in my viewing and it didn't matter because the minute I saw the ending I burst into tears because it was built up so well. It's a pretty emotional movie and it got me.

The biggest driving force is the performances and its very well done.

This movie is not going to be for everyone. It is a lot of talking, and while there is some comedic moments in the film, it's a lot of dialogue, and driving montages, and just kind of building this emotional tension between these characters. If you're not a fan of indie films, this will probably be a little boring for you.

I do think its worth checking out due to the fact that it's not that long, it's got some really good performances behind it, and it'll tug at the heartstrings quite a bit.

I think Netflix is still working on creating their bigger budget films, but I think where they go right is their smaller budget indie films that are about human connections. I don't think this will be in my top favorite films I've ever seen on Netflix, but I would recommend it to anybody who likes personal performances and smaller films.

But those are my quick thoughts on Kodachrome. What did you think? Comment and Discuss below! You can also send me your thoughts on Twitter @MovieSymposium as well as send me your requests for films I should review in the future. If you follow me on Twitter, you can get updates on future movie news and reviews coming out of this blog.

Thanks for reading!