The Life of Chuck

Front Row at the Movies by Shirrel Rhoades

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Remember “Memento,” that neo-noir psychological thriller told in reverse? Stephen King must have liked it. The fright maestro adopted this same format to tell his story “The Life of Chuck.”

The new movie based on that Stephen King novella is currently in theaters.

“The Life of Chuck” was one of four previously unpublished novellas that appeared in the gory-sounding collection “If It Bleeds.” However, this is more of a sci-fi tale than a horror story.

“The Life of Chuck” is split into three acts, told in reverse order. It chronicles the life of Charles “Chuck” Krantz – from his death (at the end of the universe) backward to his childhood.

Filmmaker Mike Flanagan has translated the story into a film starring Tom Hiddleston (“Kong: Skull Island,” “The Only Lovers Left Alive”). Other cast members include Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mia Sara, Carl Lumbly, and Mark Hamill.

Benjamin Pajek gives us a slightly younger version of Chuck. And Jacob Tremblay plays the 17-year-old version of our protagonist.

Nick Offerman serves as the narrator.

Mike Flanagan describes it as a movie “about dying young. About dying before your time.”

However, he wants you to know, this is certainly not a Stephen King horror film. He says it’s closer to “Stand by Me” or “The Shawshank Redemption” than, say, “Cujo.”

“If you’re a Stephen King fan, I think you know it doesn’t matter if it’s horror or not,” he points out. “That heart and that empathy, that love of humanity is present in all of his stories.”

Flanagan adds, “We’re telling an apocalyptic story, but no one is running and screaming from the apocalypse.”

IndieWire points out that “no studio would ever agree to make something this structurally unusual. Instead, it was independently financed, allowing this already award-winning film to actually exist for all to enjoy.”

“When I was reading the short story for the first time,” Flanagan recalls, “I almost stopped reading it in the middle of that because it hit too close. And I was reading it in April of 2020, so right after lockdown started and it felt like the world was ending. And I was like, I don’t know if I can keep reading this?”

He worried about holding onto moviegoers. “It’s the riskiest aspect of the movie. It runs the risk of really alienating people with despair and confusion.”

So, he interjects a fantastic dance number – Tom Hiddleston hoofing it like a Broadway pony.

Mike Flanagan promises that “The Life of Chuck” does not have a rabid dog. He adds, “There’s no shapeshifting monster eating children. Or is there?”

Email Shirrel: srhoades@aol.com