The Peanut Butter Falcon Image

The Peanut Butter Falcon

By Alan Ng | August 6, 2020

First, the story. Zack and Tyler start their road-trip together up the coast of North Carolina, while meeting a strange cast of characters along the way. All showing some form of compassion for either Zack or Tyler. Starting with Bruce Dern as Carl, Dern and Gotsagen have amazing chemistry together. Carl is Zak’s advocate in the retirement home, and nothing brings him more joy than helping Zak escape.

One of the most touching meet-ups is with Winki (Wayne Dehart – Thanks Wayne!), a blind gun-toting preacher, who allows the pair to take supplies for their journey in exchange for a baptism. He offers Zak a purpose and Tyler forgiveness and salvation. This encounter leads to the film’s first of many eye-watering heart-gripping moments, and we’re only halfway through the film.

As the Salt Water Redneck, Thomas Haden Church turns on the charm finding new life not only for himself as the aging wrestler but ultimately helps Zak’s fulfill his dream in an unexpected way. Wrestling fans will enjoy cameos by Jake “The Snake” Roberts (speaking of redemption) and Mick Foley.

“You’ll never cringe at his acting and you’ll never ‘cut him a break’ because he doesn’t need you to.”

As great as the supporting cast is, the film shines solely from its leads. Shia LaBeouf is again at this best as Tyler—a gruff sojourner with a tragic past and a death wish. His friendship with Zak is real and heart-breaking. Dakota Johnson is perfect casting as Eleanor (not an overstatement). Fifty Shades aside, she proves once again to be a brilliant actor. Her relationship with Zak is adversarial not because he runs away, but because she treats him like a helpless child.

Then there’s Zack Gottsagen. This movie was going to be made with only Zack in the lead role. I’m not going to say it was a perfect performance, but I will say the kid’s got chops. You’ll never cringe at his acting and you’ll never “cut him a break” because he doesn’t need you to. You’ll never utter the words, “that’s pretty good for a…” The Peanut Butter Falcon refuses to condescend to its star and tells a story that’s authentic to the life and experiences of adults with Down Syndrome.

Lastly, this is a beautiful film visually. There’s not a great deal of sets or props. It’s just Zak and Tyler walking through the backwoods, marshes, swamps, and rivers of the Southeast. It’s also a reminder just how beautiful America is. The Peanut Butter Falcon comes across cinematic too. Do not miss this film when it comes to theaters! It deserves to be seen on the big screen. What’s clear is that a lot of development time, movie resources, and A-List actors all came together to make a masterpiece of a film centering on one person…Zack Gottsagen.

The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)

Directed and Written: Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz

Starring: Zack Gottsagen, Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, John Hawkes, Thomas Haden Church, Bruce Dern, Jon Bernthal, Wayne Dehart, Yelawolf, Jake Roberts, Mick Foley, etc.

Movie score: 9/10

The Peanut Butter Falcon Image

"…The Peanut Butter Falcon is the sh!t!?!"

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  1. K Fitz says:

    This by far is the BEST film I have seen in a long time the chemistry Shia, Dakota, and Zack was awesome, there needs to be a Peanut Butter Falcon 2 for the story has not ended!!!

  2. Courtney Denniston says:

    Please make a second one!! Just watched with my kids the other night and we all loved it!! I could watch hours and hours and hours of these 3!!

  3. Kelly Jo Vaughan says:

    This was by far the best movie of the whole year!! Will definitely watch this over and over!

  4. Post-Punk Monk says:

    This was an excellent film, but I must point out that the movie took place in the North Carolina Outer Banks [albeit with Georgia standing in]. Not Florida as stated. But it captured the Outer Banks vibe well. The borderline poverty-stricken NC coastal milieu seemed very, very real. And one of the pleasures of the movie, apart from the strong leads, were the character actors who seemed like they were plucked from the environment and dropped into the film. Particular kudos for Lee Spencer who played Tyler’s boss Glen early on. I was 100% invested in that character and that cemented my bond with the film. I thought I was watching a Ken Loach film when he was onscreen! The only false note in the movie was the accent of the facility director, but that was it.

  5. Dusty says:

    The story takes place on the outer banks of North Carolina. Not Florida. It only ends in Florida.

  6. Wayne DEHART says:

    The Blind Preacher is WAYNE DEHART

  7. The Peanut Butter Falcon - NewsFind says:

    […] Should the story behind a film influence the final rating or score for that film? Should a film score higher for reasons… Source link […]

Join our Film Threat Newsletter

Newsletter Icon