The End of Oak Street starts with Anne Hathaway immediately establishing herself as the film's strongest performer, especially when compared to the wooden performance from Ewan McGregor. The premise of a writer struggling with an unsupportive spouse hits close to home for me. The split-focus direction from David Robert Mitchell isn't particularly new or uniquely executed. Instead, it often feels disorienting without accomplishing what I assume was the intention. Mitchell also struggles with the screenplay, as the dialogue can be atrocious at times and boring the rest of the time. This isn't his first failed attempt at writing interesting characters, which makes it understandable why he hasn't written or directed anything in eight years.
Anne Hathaway is easily the best part of the film. She brings enough personality and emotional weight to keep the movie watchable despite the material surrounding her. Unfortunately, even Hathaway can't carry the entire film. Ewan McGregor is noticeably weak by comparison, making it difficult to invest in their relationship or the central conflict. The male characters are particularly poorly written, with most of them seemingly only capable of talking about women and their beauty during the first third of the film. The exception is P.J. Byrne, who plays a jerk and at least gets enough characterization to make his presence memorable. There's simply very little substance to most of the men in this story.
The effects aren't particularly impressive either. The movie opens with a bunch of flashing lights, while the dinosaurs work best when they're kept out of focus or hidden behind something. It's an understandable way to save money on CGI, but the film should have spent more of its effects budget making the shots where the dinosaurs are actually visible convincing. Even the dog is sometimes CGI, which only makes the limitations more noticeable. It takes about 30 minutes before we finally see a dinosaur, and when it arrives, the effects aren't particularly impressive.
The 1980s setting feels less like an important part of the story and more like an excuse to insert a stereotypical bully and squeeze in some product placement. The children are ineffective at best and annoying at worst, while much of the action keeps the dinosaurs on the other side of something so you never get a good look at them. I found myself exhausted and simply waiting for the dinosaurs to show up, which isn't a good sign for a dinosaur movie. Anne Hathaway does everything she can to keep the film afloat, but there simply isn't enough here to work with.
Overall, The End of Oak Street is a disappointing creature feature with weak character writing, poor dialogue, underwhelming effects, and a frustratingly slow pace. David Robert Mitchell fails once again to create interesting characters, while the split-focus direction only adds to the film's disorienting presentation. The dinosaurs are rarely shown well enough to be impressive, and the human characters aren't compelling enough to make up for their absence. Anne Hathaway is easily the best part, but she can't carry this film. Result: D+
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