Odd Thomas (2014)

Told myself I wasn’t gonna cry at the end of this movie, this time. Totally lied. Oh well.

Anyway, when Abrams’ Star Trek film first came out, the whole world lined up to collectively hate Anton Yelchin, whose name sounds like someone trying to vomit and hiccup simultaneously. And hey, it was with good reason – he was horrible in that flick, ruining a childhood character of geeks worldwide. I was right there alongside them, damning his scrawny ass for his stupid floppy Stray Cats haircut and his laughably fake accent.

Odd Thomas, however, efficiently proved to me that his level of suckitude in Star Trek was either miscasting or, perhaps, a directorial issue. Shining like a star in the lead role as the eponymous Odd Thomas, Yelchin’s performance is really spectacular, and he manages to dazzle alongside and even upstage seasoned masters like co-star Willem Dafoe. I’d say he holds the movie up with his performance… except that Odd Thomas really isn’t a film that requires holding.

“I LEFT THE OVEN ON.”

I suppose I should explain – this movie is fucking amazing. It wins points with me right away by featuring a first-person narrative, keeping the film (based on a Dean Koontz story, or so Brooke tells me) afloat and engaging before it even starts. It wastes little time in getting things moving along, which is for the best: The runtime is packed with mystery and horror as Odd (yes, that’s his actual first name) unravels a cataclysmic plot that threatens to collapse the small town in which he lives. The twists are unexpected, Odd’s detective skills seem pretty solid, and each character is vibrant and welcome to the cast. There are a few bizarre cameos (Arnold Vosloo as a ghost, and Patton Oswalt as… Patton Oswalt. Though in retrospect the former cameo makes more sense, since the director also helmed The Mummy), and while they often don’t seem totally necessary they’re welcome enough, and don’t distract from the plot so much as add a bit of charm to a flick that has well enough of in the first place.

Odd Thomas sees dead people, y’see (and yes, there’s a Sixth Sense joke in there, for you who I know can’t do without it). They know he can see them and they come to him, sharing their experiences with him (somehow, since they are incapable of speech) so that he may avenge them in his own special way (occasionally involving an asskicking but usually just involving some good detective work). Vigilantism, however, isn’t really the focus of the plotline so much as the film’s backstory to explain Odd’s unique skillset, lifestyle, and supporting cast. He does his best to work within the law, alongside a cop (the aforementioned Willem Defoe) who covers his ass wherever he can.

Actually kicks a lot of ass for such a little guy.

Speaking of supporting cast, I should mention this flick’s relationships – specifically the one between Odd and his girlfriend, Stormy (portrayed by Addison Timlin). Rare are satisfactory portrayals of a “perfect” couple – this really feels like one of them. The chemistry between these two actors is fantastic, and the dialogue feels organic while being vibrant enough to show that these two really are peas in a pod. We meet this relationship with the idea that they’re “destined to be together forever.” By the end, we believe it.

The more intense special effects are CGI (and fairly low-grade CGI at that), but the creativity with which it’s used and the creatures it’s being used to portray kinda… well, work. More importantly, Yelchin’s reactions to the things he sees help to convince us even more that the things he’s seeing are real, whether or not we don’t want to think so. This makes itself the most clear with the “bodaks,” spectral entities that only Odd can see. Thing is, they don’t know he can see them, so he has to both react to their presence and pretend he isn’t, while the actual actor looks at nothing at all. This balancing act of a performance is pulled off flawlessly.

Pictured: That stuff I was just talking about. Seriously, keep up.

The dialogue is just over-the-top enough while not having that schlocky, “written-by-a-teenage-boy” flair and coming off instead as a sort of witty, well-lit noir. This could just be a matter of my personal preferences, of course, since everything’s a matter of taste except for The Princess Bride. Still, while the dialogue may not be 100% “realistic,” nor is it dull, and each interaction is filled with quirky lines and a lot of really great chemistry between the actors.

I don’t want to spoil the end, but since I already mentioned it, I’ll warn you – while Titantic did nothing but bore me, the end of this movie makes me sob like a little bitch every time I see it. It’s a brutal gut-punch so bring tissues if you have a habit of waterworks displays (no, not watersports, that’s a different thing).

To my taste, Odd Thomas is a masterpiece. Balancing wit, suspense, personality, drama, humor, action, and atmosphere on the edge of a knife, the spectacular cast, vibrant script, and quirky style really set this apart from the flock. You may not like it as much as I did – it plays to a lot of things I specifically enjoy – but I won’t accept that this isn’t a competent and charming experience that was just as good the second time as it was the first.

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