Yes, I know I'm a bit late to the presses with this one, but I couldn't possibly let the summer movie season go by without one last hurrah at my nearest cineplex. And what better way to end the season than with The End of Oak Street, its self-professed final event movie. Also, can we really consider the summer done without seeing some dinosaurs chomping on fools? In any case, Oak Street is here to scratch that exact itch with its pointy velociraptor claws. But does the film evolve a formula already perfected by the very first Jurassic Park movie, or is it yet another dino-misfire in the vein of 65?
Set in 1982, the film revolves around the Platts, a family of four (not counting their dog, Starbuck) who live on the titular Oak Street in the small, suburban town of Flowervale, Michigan. And it doesn't take long into the movie before we learn that its various members are dealing with a variety of issues, the least of which include financial troubles and a potential split from an impending divorce. But all of that gets put on the back burner when their entire town gets uprooted one night and plopped in the middle of a wild prehistoric jungle. Soon, their once quaint neighborhood gets invaded, and these new neighbors aren't exactly nice or particularly welcoming.
Considering how our fascination with dinosaurs remains a part of the cultural zeitgeist, it is a mystery why very few movies have been able to replicate the thrills and success of the ones in the Jurassic Park film series. Perhaps it has something to do with that iconic John Williams score, or the cutting-edge technology they use in bringing their dinos to life. Whatever the case, we continue to see those movies rake in billions at the box office as moviegoers flock to see them do the same thing over and over again, while others fight for scraps. Well, all that changes with The End of Oak Street.
Because not since those Jurassic Park movies has their formula been this fully realized, as it captures the same sense of thrill and emotional beats one might expect from the Steven Spielberg classics. Even more than that, it takes the key ingredient of that formula, namely the tense, close-quarter encounters, and infuses it with a strong dose of 80s nostalgia by way of Spielberg's other movies from that era like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. I'll always be partial to movies set in the 80s, being a child of the 80s myself, and this one does a solid job of recreating that look and feel.
Speaking of looks, I was very much surprised by how good the dinosaur effects were. This is especially true after rewatching both 65 and Jurassic World: Rebirth this past month, and seeing the large gulf separating the quality of the CGI used in both movies. I mean, for a movie of its size and budget, the effects in Oak Street looked decent enough. It did take a while before those dinosaurs show up, though, and we instead spend that time getting to know the Platts and the suburbs they call home. But once they do, the tension hardly lets up as we are thrust from one setpiece to another.
There was one setpiece in particular involving a giant snake that I imagine would haunt my nightmares for weeks to come. It was easily the creepiest thing in the entire movie and the way the scene was constructed served to remind me that the movie was directed by David Robert Mitchell, the same man behind It Follows, one of my favorite horror movies of the last two decades. There was also one death among the plethora of deaths in the movie that hit the hardest, at least judging by the reaction of the audience I saw the movie with. It was an "Oh, shit" moment that immediately served to raise the stakes.
The only real issues I had with The End of Oak Street were the science behind the main conceit of the film, as well as its cop-out ending. I, of course, realize that discussing any of those things would be considered full-on spoiler territory, but it is still worth stating that I found the explanation behind what was really going on and how it was delivered a tad contrived. As for the ending, the less said about that the better. Just know that you'll either come out of the movie relived or bewildered, and I found myself somewhere in the middle.
The End of Oak Street is proof that the dinosaurs-chomping-on-fools formula can work outside the Jurassic Park franchise. In some ways, it even does a better job of fulfilling the promises teased at the end of The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Because even though those films showed or hinted at what a contemporary world suddenly invaded by dinosaurs might look like, none of their subsequent entries ever managed to do anything remotely worthwhile with that enticing premise. This is why Oak Street earns an easy recommendation.
