“The End of Oak Street” Cares More about its Dinos Than its Humans
Director David Robert Mitchell’s 2014 film, It Follows, is often cited as the beginning of the “elevated horror” genre. It was gritty, kind of odd, and wholly in command of its supernatural story. In the decade since, Mitchell has made the polarizing Under the Silver Lake, a mystery tale with DNA that can be traced back to David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Now, Mitchell has pivoted genres to the classic ’80s blockbuster. Think dads in short shorts and kids on bikes riding down sleepy suburban streets with something sinister looming to shatter their idyllic world. The End of Oak Street is an attempt to return to the era of the bombastic summer blockbuster, but one that comes across as too hollow to become a new classic.
Oak Street is what comes to mind when you think of the golden era of American suburbs. Neighbors know each other, they host block parties and check in on one another. The Platts live in a quaint house on Oak Street. From the outside, they seem like a perfect family. Mother Denise (Anne Hathaway), father Greg (Ewan McGregor), son Brian (Christian Convery), daughter Audrey (Maisy Stella), and dog Starbuck (Brisket & Buzz). On the inside, Denise and Greg’s marriage is on thin ice and the kids can tell. One night, after a series of strange flashes, their sleepy neighborhood has been transported to the Jurassic era and the family finds themselves in a fight for survival with no obvious way home.
Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures
The End of Oak Street gave away its dinosaur secret fairly early on in its marketing campaign. Some moviegoers wanted to believe this was another secret movie in the Cloverfield universe, but that’s not the case. This is a dinosaur flick through and through, and in that regard, it’s the best blockbuster dinosaur movie Hollywood has put out in a long while. It has more exciting dinosaur sequences than the recent iterations of the Jurassic World franchise and the visual effects of these creatures is stunning. There’s a variety of dinosaurs stalking the Platt family and their neighbors. Some in the air, some in the water, others on land. All the while, the neighborhood doesn’t have much to protect themselves with. A few houses have a gun, but most are forced to fight against these beasts with kitchen utensils, which adds to the do-or-die feeling of the film.
Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures
It’s not a question of how difficult it would be for the Platt family to survive in these dire circumstances, but rather if the audience finds themselves caring about these people. The unfortunate answer is that there is little for the viewer to hold onto. The family is having problems, but they feel so shoehorned in that these conflicts seem more insincere than anything else. Mitchell’s ability to layer these interpersonal dynamics in the face of a threat was what many celebrated in It Follows, but the same can’t be said in his latest.
The End of Oak Street clearly comes from a place of admiration for the Spielbergian movie of suburban survival. This is a style of movie that has raised multiple generations at this point, and you can’t blame Mitchell for wanting to try to capture that magic. The End of Oak Street is an homage that’s missing the gooey emotional core that makes the classics withstand the test of time. There’s a hollowness to the people of The End of Oak Street that’s impossible to shake. It’s such a strange disconnect to see Hathaway’s tear-stricken Denise try to save the lives of her kids, recognizing that Hathaway is giving a hell of a performance, but ultimately feeling nothing as the dinosaurs circle closer. The End of Oak Street has wrapped itself in the trappings of the blockbuster greats of yesteryear without seeing it through all the way.
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