The Life of Chuck (2025) Neon/Sci-Fi-Drama-Fantasy RT: 110 minutes Rated R (language) Director: Mike Flanagan Screenplay: Mike Flanagan Music: The Newton Brothers Cinematography: Eben Bolter Release date: June 6, 2025 (US) Cast: Tom Hiddleston, Jacob Tremblay, Benjamin Pajak, Cody Flanagan, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillan, Mark Hamill, Mia Sara, Carl Lumbly, David Dastmalchian, Harvey Guillen, Michael Trucco, Q’orianka Kilcher, Matthew Lillard, Rahul Kohli, Violet McGraw, Annalise Basso, Kate Siegel, Samantha Sloyan, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Heather Langenkamp, Taylor Gordon (aka The Pocket Queen), Saidah Ekulona, Antonio Raul Corbo, Nick Offerman (narrator).
Rating: *** ½
When you hear the name Stephen King, you probably think of blood-soaked prom queens, haunted snowbound hotels, possessed cars or killer clowns. He is a true master of horror. What most people don’t realize is that he’s also quite the humanist. Surely you’ve seen Stand by Me (originally published as The Body), The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. They bear his name and they’re anything but horror. They’re optimistic works that paint a positive portrait of mankind, common decency and the triumph of the human spirit and all that. That’s the category The Life of Chuck falls under.
Written and directed by Mike Flanagan (Doctor Sleep), the supernatural drama The Life of Chuck is an adaptation of the novella from King’s If It Bleeds collection. It’s a story told in three acts but in reverse order. It starts at the end of Chuck’s story. Who’s Chuck? I’ll get to that. First, let me tell you that The Life of Chuck doesn’t at all go where you expect. The opening act (Act 3, that is) depicts the world literally falling apart. California has fallen into the ocean. Other natural disasters are occurring all around the world. The internet is down for good. Most people have given up hope. They’re just waiting for the inevitable. Two of them, science teacher Marty (Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave) and ER nurse Felicia (Gillan, Guardians of the Galaxy 1-3), just want to know one thing. What’s up with all these signs and ads thanking some guy named Chuck for 39 great years?
After this apocalyptic start, The Life of Chuck changes course by introducing us to Chuck (Hiddleston, Loki), an accountant who loves life. Acts Two and One take us through his life. The latter shows us his childhood, a time of joy and tragedy. Raised by his grandparents after losing his family, Chuck (played by Benjamin Pajak as a child) grows up learning to appreciate the great things life has to offer. In his case, it’s numbers and dancing. Bubbe (Sara, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) instills a love of dance in him while Zaydee (Hamill, Star Wars) explains the beauty and absoluteness of math. He also comes to appreciate Walt Whitman’s poetry, “Song of Myself” in particular.
So where does the supernatural come into The Life of Chuck? He grows up in an Old Victorian house with a cupola that’s always locked. His grandfather forbids him to go in there. There’s something in there, something that torments Zaydee. It adds an element of mystery to The Life of Chuck, but feels strangely detached from it at the same time. Flanagan struggles a bit to connect it with the rest of the film. He eventually gets there, but it still feels like it belongs in a different movie. It’s the only hiccup in an otherwise brilliant film.
I didn’t expect to love The Life of Chuck as much as I did, especially with the grim opening act. I have this thing about end of the world scenarios. However, when you factor it into the whole of the film, it’s actually rather beautiful in a sad way. That’s where The Life of Chuck truly succeeds. It is an emotional roller coaster ride, a blend of happy and sad that manages to stay life-affirming even if the face of doom and death. Throughout it all, Chuck never gives up. He has a zest for life as proven by his impromptu dance with an attractive stranger (Basso, Ouija: Origin of Evil) while a street drummer (The Pocket Queen) happily bangs away. The joy inherent in this scene is palpable. The same is true of the sequence where young Chuck and a taller classmate (Bliss, Avatar: The Way of Water) show off their moves at a school dance. There’s plenty to smile at in The Life of Chuck. There’s also plenty to cry about (in a good way).
Hiddleston gives a great performance as adult Chuck, a man facing his early demise with courage and joy. He gets ample support from an amazing cast that also includes Carl Lumbly (Captain America: Brave New World) as a funeral director, Matthew Lillard (Scream) as a neighbor, Q’orianka Kilcher (Yellowstone) as Chuck’s wife and Violet McGraw (M3GAN) as a roller skating girl. I have to admit it’s bizarre seeing Mia Sara playing a grandmother. The same goes for Heather Langenkamp (A Nightmare on Elm Street) as a friend of Bubbe. Hamill is nicely grumpy as the wise old Zaydee. Nick Offerman’s narration is a very nice touch.
I do NOT intend to spoil The Life of Chuck for you. I wouldn’t want to deprive anybody of the joy derived from the moment that everything clicks. There will come a time, it’s different for everybody, when you finally put it all together and understand what it’s getting at. It’s satisfying to say the least. In fact, I’d even say The Life of Chuck commands a second viewing so you can go back and catch everything you missed the first time around. I definitely plan to see it again. It’s that great!
