Directed by: Jamie Linden
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 59%
I had seen 10 Years advertised at RedBox numerous times but was always hesitant to rent it. I am always leery about spending money on movies I had never heard of (especially if they have some big names in them). I decided to watch the trailer and was convinced to at least give it a shot. Watch it here:
My impressions from the trailer were, "What? Channing Tatum is in...whoa, Justin Long...Ari Graynor...CHRIS PRATT!? Done!" So I rented it and was actually very impressed with it.
10 Years is not ground breaking in any way. It is a film about a group of twentysomethings coming back to their hometown for their ten year reunion. Everyone has grown up and done something with their lives. Marty (Long) has become successful in New York, AJ (Max Minghella) is wealthy and married, Jake (Tatum) is contemplating marrying his girlfriend Jess (played by his real life wife Jenna Dewan-Tatum), Cully (Pratt) and Sam (Graynor) are married with two kids, etc. What makes the film work so well are the actors. You believe that these people were friends in high school and now they are going to relive those four years in this one night. One of the characters that was not shown enough was the reunion organizer Julie (Kelly Noonan). She spends the entire film making sure everything is perfect and the people are socializing yet she doesn't have any meaningful moments with anyone. She is like a voyeur peeking in on the lives of people she went to school with. I am not sure how high school reunions are planned but I assume the person in charge was a generally popular person while they were in high school. So why is she so scattered? Sure, she is concerned with making sure everything is going well but she is barely in the film. I believe she is, in a way, a representation of those people that live in the "glory days"; those people that can't let go. The most compelling story in the film was Cully's. He was the stereotypical douche in high school. He picked on smart kids, band kids, and anyone else not in his own social circle. He plans to utilize the reunion as a way to make amends. The problem with this plan is that he hasn't changed much. He has grown up and matured enough to secure a wife, a good job, and manages to keep his children alive but, socially, he is still the same person. This comes out over the course of the film as he tries to apologize to the people he tormented in high school. In the end, he ends up making a fool of himself and keeping the reputation he earned in high school which is absolutely heartbreaking. 10 Years isn't without laughs and happy moments though. Reeves (Oscar Isaac) has become a wildly successful musician. Throughout the film, several people come up to him and tell him his song "Never Had" is their favorite and it has changed their lives. He accepts their compliments and tries to be as cordial as possible, but his attention is always on Elise (Kate Mara). Elise was a recluse in high school and came to the reunion on a whim. Reeves has had feelings for her since junior year but has never expressed them to her. This reunion may be his last opportunity to do so.
My only real complaint about the film is that the pacing gets off near the end. Throughout the whole film we are following several different stories within the same space. A conversation between two characters will be on screen at one point and then we'll shift to someone getting a drink at the bar. We'll then shift back to the conversation and it feels that it has progressed naturally. When everything is getting wrapped up; things seem to pause when we aren't watching. Two characters decide to TP a house and get caught while in the act. They go into the home to apologize and then the film shifts back to the bar that everyone else has congregated at. We stay there for a good ten minutes or so and then we shift back to the house. The two characters are still in the doorway and haven't made their apology yet. That is jarring to me. All I can think about is how they have been awkwardly standing there for ten minutes waiting to say something. It happens with other scenes as well so it wasn't just an editing overlook. Everything should have continued to flow naturally as it had the whole time.
No BS
10 Years is an enjoyable movie. There is nothing too serious going on. Ten years from now you probably won't remember 10 Years. That being said, I enjoyed it. Aubrey Plaza is great for the small time she is in it, Chris Pratt is always worth watching, and the stories within the story are pretty well crafted and engaging.
My Score: 7/10
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