Linoleum movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Linoleum

This sci-fi dramedy

RATING:

LENGTH: 101 minutes

Movie Review Mom GRADE: B+

IN A NUTSHELL:

Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan), the host of a failing children’s science TV show called “Above & Beyond”, has always had aspirations of being an astronaut. After a mysterious space-race-era satellite coincidentally falls from space and lands in his backyard, his midlife crisis manifests in a plan to rebuild the machine into his dream rocket. As his relationship with his wife (Rhea Seehorn) and daughter (Katelyn Nacon) start to strain, surreal events begin unfolding around him — a doppelgänger moving into the house next door, a car falling from the sky, and an unusual teenage boy forging a friendship with him. He slowly starts to piece these events together to ultimately reveal that there’s more to his life story than he once thought.

Written & Directed by:Colin West

The movie is already the Recipient of the Sloan Science on Screen Award at the 2022 SFFILM Festival. Congrats!

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Kids will get to learn a little bit about science.
One of the young characters claims to be gay.
Some profanity, 1 F-bomb, and crude comments.
A girl flips the bird.
Bullying

THEMES:

Living a life of meaning and purpose
Regret
Untapped potential
Finding joy
Going after your dream
Family
Relationships

THINGS I LIKED:

I’m a huge Jim Gaffigan fan, so I’m always happy to see him get roles in movies. In this movie, we get to see a double dose of him!
We get to see some lovely cinematography of small-town living in the fall.
Starring:
Jim Gaffigan (“The Jim Gaffigan Show”, Peter Pan & Wendy)
Rhea Seehorn (“Better Call Saul”, “Veep”)
Katelyn Nacon (“The Walking Dead”, “T@gged”)
Gabriel Rush (Moonrise Kingdom, The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Amy Hargreaves (“Homeland”, “13 Reasons Why”)
Roger Hendricks Simon (Love in Kilnerry, The Sublet)
Elisabeth Henry (The Sisterhood of Night, Behind the Mirror)
West Duchovny (A Mouthful of Air, The Report)
with Michael Ian Black (Wet Hot American Summer, The State)
and Tony Shalhoub (“Monk”, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
I adore Tony Shalhoub. He’s perfect in everything he does.
The plot twist is unexpected and delightful. This is the kind of movie you’ll want to watch twice after you see the end so you can go back and catch the hints you missed.
The movie is quirky and entertaining.
I share my birthday with my twin sister! Who do YOU share a birthday with?
I just saw another new movie that Katelyn Nacon is in: Devil’s Peak. I watched The Walking Dead long before she joined the award-winning cast.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

Acts 1 & 2 move slowly.
Some viewers won’t understand the twisty end.

INTERESTING LINES:

* “My dad used to always say, ‘There are 2 kinds of people in the world, Cameron: astronomers and astronauts. Some look at the stars; others swim in them.” – Cameron Edwin, Kent Armstrong (Jim Gaffigan)
“I’m suggesting that, perhaps, the universe in our heads is more real than reality itself.” – Cameron Edwin, Kent Armstrong (Jim Gaffigan)
“Remember when we used to talk about doing something fantastic? Whatever happened to that? – Cameron Edwin, Kent Armstrong (Jim Gaffigan)
“It’s not that simple.” – Erin Edwin (Rhea Seehorn)
“What are you doing?” – Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan) “Something Fantastic.” – Erin Edwin (Rhea Seehorn)