Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

The 4:30 Movie Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 2, 2024

The eighties seem to be the new sixties or seventies, or whatever the last decade to be revisited in a nostalgia fest of a film might have been, at least judging by the kind of hilariously simultaneous release of this film from Lionsgate and 1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever! from MVD Visual. The 4:30 Movie is the latest quasi- autobiographical effort from Kevin Smith, and it takes place just a few years after the retrospective from MVD, namely 1986, following a young male named Brian David (Austin Zajur), a fill in for Smith himself, as Brian navigates those nascent teen years when hormones probably interfere with rational thinking more often than not. It's always been kind of interesting to me how widely variant reactions to Smith's filmography can be, and not necessarily (perhaps understandably) with regard to his more outré outings like Tusk, but even his ostensibly "sweeter" films based at least in part on his own life experiences like Clerks I-III Complete Movie Collection . As Ken Jeong mentions in an interview included as a supplement on this disc, The 4:30 Movie may be Smith's "most personal film yet", and as such, my hunch is reactions will probably reflect how viewers responded previously to efforts like the Clerks films.

Smith has a real ear for "authentic" sounding dialogue and believable if at times pretty eccentric characters, and both of those proclivities are fully on display in The 4:30 Movie. The film begins with a rather charming little vignette on the phone (like, old style rotary phones) between Brian and his crush Melody Barnegat (Siena Agudong). Brian musters up his courage to ask Melody out on their first official date (the two had quickly kissed in a pool the summer before), and he is both surprised and overjoyed when she agrees to meet him at the neighborhood theater for the "4:30 movie". (One of the kind of cool "meta" aspects of The 4:30 Movie is not just that its title stems from a daily television broadcast Smith grew up with, but that he matriculated that title or at least showing time over to an actual movie house that he purchased several years ago in his native New Jersey.)

The rest of the film is basically a series of misadventures as Brian and his two best buds, Burny (Nicholas Cirillo) and Belly (Reed Northrup), prepare to indulge in one of their favorite pastimes, namely paying for one movie at the multiplex, and then sneaking into several more, one after the other. Burny is not especially happy that Brian has set up a later meeting with Melody, something that will hobble their "slate" of planned viewing experiences, but other obstacles soon confront the trio, including manic theater manager Mike (Ken Jeong), who after a series of mishaps ends up banning the three from his establishment "for life". Guess how effective that turns out to be.

There may not be much actual substance to this story, though it attempts to provide some insight into how a young man (boy, really) is beginning to understand how to translate his dreams into reality. Instead, the film coasts on a considerable amount of charm and some occasional guffaws in traditional Smith fashion. Some of the biggest laughs are actually almost throwaway lines, not necessarily building blocks of a well constructed screenplay, including a couple of choice moments with Belly and especially manager Mike. The underlying story is unabashedly predictable, but there's a sweetness to this effort that recalls some of Smith's best work (even if you're in the demographic that would question how that delineation is arrived at). Performances are generally quite winning, and Jeong provides the film with the kind of over the top performance that almost inherently conveys comedic energy, even if the writing doesn't always support things.

Speaking of probably less than hilarious writing and over the top performances, proving that manic emoting doesn't always redound to the benefit of a film Rachel Dratch is on hand as Brian's mother, proving that she can indeed play a character more annoying than her home warranty commercial psychic. Smith works in a few passingly funny cameos, including some in supposed trailers for films the boys sit through in anticipation of getting to the main attraction.

Note: I was evidently at least a bit more fond of the film than my colleague Brian Orndorf. You can read Brian's thoughts on The 4:30 Movie here.

The 4:30 Movie Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The 4:30 Movie is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. As of the writing of this review, the IMDb doesn't really offer any substantial technical information, and none of the shots of cameras in the making of featurette on this disc provided a clear view of brands and/or models, but in the completely unscientific category, I did find an Instagram post by colorist Frederik Bokkenheuser mentioning the film with tags for both Arri and Blackmagic cameras, for what that's worth. There is also a very brief interview with Kevin Smith enterprising Googlers can find where he discusses how (speaking of Bokkenheuser) color timing played an important role in the look of the film, along with what he terms the "halcyon glow" of 80s movies. This does have a (digitally created) organic texture to it, and a just slightly diffused feeling which I guess might be what Smith refers to as a "halcyon glow". The digital grain and diffusion can both make things look just slightly fuzzy at times, though on the whole detail levels remain nicely intact. There's an almost elegiac burnished yellow tone suffusing a lot of the presentation, as perhaps befits this nostalgic memory piece that is perhaps being viewed through rose (or saffron) colored glasses. Shadow detail is also surprisingly good in some of the blue / purple lit interior theater scenes where the boys are catching a flick (or at least a trailer for a coming attraction). Those trailers are typically intentionally distressed and as a result actually kind of look more like 16mm than 35mm.

The 4:30 Movie Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 4:30 Movie features Dolby Atmos track that certainly provides at least intermittent surround activity, but which simply may not offer a ton of opportunity for showy sonics a la more "explosive" features with Atmos audio. This is often a noticeably front heavy mix, to the point that only the center channel can be utilized for some dialogue. The side and rear channels are occasionally engaged by both ambient environmental sounds and the perhaps surprisingly few source cues (including the well remembered "I Can't Wait" by my hometown Portland friends Nu Shooz). I'd actually be hard pressed to mention any really obvious use of the Atmos speakers, though some of the noisier theater scenes probably come closest. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

The 4:30 Movie Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Writer / Director Kevin Smith


• Going Home Again: Making The 4:30 Movie (HD; 22:53) is an above average EPK with some good interviews.


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:27)

Lionsgate sent its 4K UHD release for purposes of this review, but it looks like this standalone 1080 release includes DVD and digital copies and has packaging featuring a slipcover.

The 4:30 Movie Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

One of the best things about The 4:30 Movie is how sweetly heartfelt it is. One of the worst things about The 4:30 Movie is how overindulgent Smith can be. If you liked at least the first Clerks movie, you may be predisposed to like this one, too. I found the positives to outweigh the negatives in the long run. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements engaging. With caveats noted, Recommended.