The End of Oak Street

Starring: Anne Hathaway, Ewan McGregor, Maisy Stella, Christian Convery, Jordan Alexa Davis, P.J. Byrne

Director: David Robert Mitchell

Despite having all the presumed ingredients for a happy life, Denise (Hathaway) and Greg (McGregor) are anything but. Their marriage is crumbling and neither of them want to talk about it, with Greg instead picking up odd jobs that keep him away and Denise writing a novel based on their marital issues. Their kids Audrey (Stella) and Brian (Convery) can sense it too and are worried their parents are going to split up. After a prehistoric flower randomly turns up in a neighbor’s backyard, a sudden bright flashing light seemingly transports the entire neighborhood to prehistoric times. The family must now come to terms with their issues if they hope to find their way home as they fend off hungry and dangerous dinosaurs.

Following the success of Jurassic Park back in 1993, studios have been trying to launch a new franchise involving dinosaurs ever since. In fact, outside of the Jurassic franchise, there haven't been any real success stories. And even in that series, we can put success in quotes in regards to some of the sequels, because despite making a good haul at the box office, their quality is quite variable. The last attempt at a dinosaur movie was 2023's flop 65 starring Adam Driver which released after several delays. Mitchell, who had never helmed a big budget blockbuster before The End of Oak Street, had a lot of weight on his shoulders to make a film that could emerge from the shadow of Spielberg's classic film and for the most part, he succeeds.

To call this the best dinosaur movie since Jurassic Park feels like quite the compliment but it’s a shockingly low bar to clear. That being said, The End of Oak Street is a really fun blockbuster to end the summer movie season. Filled to the brim with fun action scenes and a surprising amount of humor, Writer-Director David Robert Mitchell captures what people enjoy most about creature features: the creatures themselves.

The marketing for this movie did a fantastic job, even though they reveal that dinosaurs are involved in the story. The movie takes a little time to reveal this, but not too long that it feels like the movie was mis-marketed. While the movie does feel like it drags a little in the beginning, once it gets going and the dinos are revealed, this thing hits the throttle and never stops,

Director Mitchell, known for the indie horror hit It Follows and the stoner mystery Under the Silver Lake, keeps his finger on the audience’s pulse and brings a good sense of humor to the story when it needs it. These are the stealthiest dinosaurs ever, and it’s hard to not laugh at the lack of situational awareness the main characters have. The best laugh comes when Hathaway and McGregor stumble across a pair of dinosaurs getting intimate. What could have come across as a cheap laugh or attempt to give the audience a shock actually is a clever way to underscore the current issues between Hathaway and McGregor’s characters, Despite these moments of levity, Mitchell pushes the limits of the PG-13 rating and delivers a shockingly brutal film.

Anne Hathaway is having a hell of a year. This is her fourth movie to hit theaters this year (the others being Mother Mary, The Devil Wears Prada 2 and The Odyssey) and she still has Verity to come later this year. Spanning multiple genres, Hathaway is putting in her strongest work yet and Oak Street is no exception. She and McGregor have great chemistry. Even though their character's marriage is struggling and he’s very passive, we are rooting for them to reconcile and figure things out. While it’s a testament to both the lead actors, Hathaway in particular comes alive during the action scenes and is having a blast shooting a gun at some prehistoric foes.

While it’s not the fault of the movie itself, the crowd I saw this film with was weird. They laughed at several moments that weren't meant to be funny, including a major death late in the film. I could understand if Mitchell had chosen to film the scene in a tongue in cheek way but it wasn't. It left me feeling a little weird after the film.

Despite some pacing issues and a surprisingly brutal film, this was a fun end of summer blockbuster that should entertain genre fans. It takes a little while to get there, but once it does it won't disappoint.

Grade: B