Movie Review: ‘The 4:30 Movie’

A semi-autographical coming-of-age teen flick, ‘The 4:30 Movie’ goes down easier and leaves a much less bitter taste than Kevin Smith’s other recent films.

(L to R) Reed Northrup as Belly, Nicholas Cirillo as Burny and Austin Zajur as Brian David in the Romantic Comedy, 'The 4:30 Movie', a Saban Films release. Photo courtesy of Ralph Bavaro.

Opening in theaters September 20th is ‘The 4:30 Movie,’ written and directed by Kevin Smith and starring Austin Zajur, Nicholas Cirillo, Reed Northrup, Siena Agudong, Jason Lee, Kate Micucci, Justin Long, Genesis Rodriguez, and Ken Jeong.

Initial Thoughts

(L to R) Siena Agudong as Melody Barnegat and Austin Zajur as Brian David in the Romantic Comedy, 'The 4:30 Movie', a Saban Films release. Photo courtesy of Ralph Bavaro.

Moving away from the deconstructed horror and near-nihilistic meta comedy of his past few films (including the pure despair of his last one, ‘Clerks III’), Kevin Smith seems to be in a much better mood with ‘The 4:30 Movie,’ a semi-autobiographical teen comedy that draws heavily from his own early life and finds just enough of a sweet spot between his usual tasteless humor and some genuinely earnest coming-of-age romance to keep the film interesting and perhaps even attract a few new viewers to his walled cinematic garden.

Smith’s latest joint benefits from nice performances by his young cast as well, which partially counteracts his usual tendency to park the camera and let scenes roll on for too long. At the same time, he can’t help but include a bunch of his trademark raunchy humor, and the list of guest stars from the vast canon of his View Askewniverse can be equal parts distracting, irritating, and funny.

Story and Direction

Director/Writer Kevin Smith behind the scenes of the Romantic Comedy, 'The 4:30 Movie', a Saban Films release. Photo courtesy of Ralph Bavaro.

For those of us of a certain age who grew up in the New York/New Jersey area – as Kevin Smith did – “The 4:30 Movie” was a holy after-school ritual every day. Broadcast on the local ABC-TV affiliate (Channel 7, back in the prehistoric days when cable was something you towed a car with and streaming was what rain did down your windows), the program fit both theatrical and made-for-TV films into a daily 90-minute timeslot. The show’s themed weeks, in which it would show all five ‘Planet of the Apes’ films or a string of Godzilla features, were an essential part of many grade-schoolers’ film education.

We suspect Smith was a fan of that ‘4:30 Movie’ too, but that’s not the nostalgia that his new film ‘The 4:30 Movie’ harvests, sadly. Instead, the title refers to the showtime of a new R-rated film playing at the local multiplex in the New Jersey town of Atlantic Highlands (near where Smith grew up) that three friends – film-obsessed Brian (Austin Zajur), ladies’ man Burny (Nicholas Cirillo), and seemingly dim yet observant Belly (Reed Northrup) – plan on sneaking into after paying to see an earlier PG movie they’ve watched before. But there’s a new wrinkle to the plan: Brian has also invited his crush Melody (Siena Agudong) along. After failing to go to second base (with her encouragement and permission) in her pool last summer, Brian has remained infatuated with Melody and wants to take her on a proper date…with his two best friends along for the trip.

‘The 4:30 Movie’ takes place in the summer of 1986, right in the midst of Smith’s teen years and clearly inspired by events from his own life (the film was shot at the cineplex in which it takes place, which Smith now owns). As with all Smith films, the plot is only a loose framework on which to hang a bunch of character interactions and random incidents, most of which feature walk-ons from Smith regulars like Rosario Dawson, Jason Lee, Justin Long, Harley Quinn Smith, and of course ‘Clerks’ stalwarts Jeff Anderson, Brian O’Halloran, and Jason Mewes (spoiler alert: they don’t play their regular characters here, but the movie is very much set in the View Askewniverse).

Ken Jeong as Manager Mike in the Romantic Comedy, 'The 4:30 Movie', a Saban Films release. Photo courtesy of Ralph Bavaro.

There are plenty of moments, characterizations, and jokes in ‘The 4:30 Movie’ that fall flat, just as there are others that are crude or, in the case of the overbearing, self-important multiplex owner Manager Mike (Ken Jeong), borderline offensive. But there is a sweetness at the heart of the movie, exemplified by the relationship between Brian and Melody. He is shy, horny, and immature, but respectful where it counts, while she is self-possessed, confident, wise beyond her years, and direct in her eagerness to be Brian’s girlfriend. Their blooming romance comes into direct collision with Brian’s relationship to his two bros, Burny and Belly, with Burny in particular having a dim view of the female species that one hopes he’ll eventually grow out of. The situation brings the friendship between the three to a head, changing their dynamic in ways they don’t see coming.

Those are the best parts of ‘The 4:30 Movie,’ where Smith hits at some genuine emotional truth among teenagers who are just starting to brush up against the feelings and experiences that mark their transition to adulthood. Smith’s empathy for that, as well as his genuine affection for the time, place, and cultural zeitgeist in which the film is set, makes this one of his better movies in recent years. The rest of it – the inert camerawork, staid compositions, jokes that just dangle helplessly in the air – in a weird way, they’re part of the charm too this time.

The Cast

(L to R) Reed Northrup, Nicholas Cirillo and Austin Zajur in director Kevin Smith's ‘The 4:30 Movie'. Photo: Saban Films.

Whether it’s the aging semi-professional slackers of ‘Clerks III’ or the insipid leads of ‘Yoga Hosers,’ Kevin Smith has a knack for casting people it can sometimes be difficult to watch. With ‘The 4:30 Movie,’ however, his two leads – Austin Zajur as Brian and Siena Agudong as Melody – are two of his better choices. Agudong in particular is a potential star in the making, radiating intelligence, charisma, and warmth, while Zajur is quite effective himself as a teen pulled in several directions while trying to find his own.

Nick Cirillo and Reed Northrup both show their own flashes of wit and depth as Brian’s friends, with Northrup in particular having a standout scene late in the game. As for the rest of the cast – well, it’s a wonder than Ken Jeong manages to eke out some memorably funny lines and even a moment of humanity or two as the otherwise abrasive Manager Mike, while Genesis Rodriguez gets a brief spotlight as a box office cashier with a secret of her own. Everyone else – Smith’s usual coterie of pals and repertoire players – more or less walks through and waves.

Final Thoughts

(L to R) Reed Northrup as Belly, Austin Zajur as Brian David and Nicholas Cirillo as Burny in the Romantic Comedy, 'The 4:30 Movie', a Saban Films release. Photo courtesy of Ralph Bavaro.

As we said above, ‘The 4:30 Movie’ is not likely to be a game-changer for Kevin Smith – he might gain a few more viewers for this one, but his style of filmmaking is what it is, and his fanbase is pretty much entrenched. When you sit down for a Kevin Smith film, you know what you’re going to get, and you’re either open to navigating that or not.

Having said that, this movie does have a lot more warmth to it that his last few outings, and while Smith always pours his heart into his films, that heart comes through a little more clearly here. It’s an ode to what he himself describes in a long end-credits thank-you list as a “happy childhood,” and there are moments that many of us can relate to here (including sneaking from the PG movie into the R-rated one). Now we’d like to see a film about ABC’s “4:30 Movie” as well.

‘The 4:30 Movie’ receives 6.5 out of 10 stars.

What is the plot of ‘The 4:30 Movie’?

Three teenage friends (Austin Zajur, Nicholas Cirillo and Reed Northrup) map out an afternoon outing to the local cineplex in the summer of 1986, but their plans to sneak into a new R-rated movie could be disrupted by the irritating theater owner and a host of other characters -- not to mention one of the boys bringing his dream girl to the cinema as well.