"HOW IT ENDS" // SXSW 2021
In uncertain times, a film with characters and situations that are worse off than ours can often leave us feeling, "Hey, at least it's not as bad as that." Such is the case for exploring HOW IT ENDS, an end of the world dark comedy shot pre-pandemic but delayed until now due to the pandemic. It's from the minds of Zoe Lister-Jones and Daryl Wein and is both heartbreaking and hilarious, moving and ridiculous. In other words, it's everything I hoped it would be. Lister-Jones plays Liza, a woman who's dragged out of bed on the last day of the world literally by her younger self (Cailee Spaeny). Together, they are going to spend the day, well, together, exploring past relationships and uncertain times as a duo. Younger Liza tells the much more maligned other Liza that she's not alone. She has her. As we discover, younger versions of people are popping up all over the place, her on the last day of the world.
Their plan is kind of like a self-help, emotional to-do list: meet up with people who she needs closure from, make amends with others and maybe even spend the end of the world with the guy who got away. Since the earth destroying asteroid is due to hit earth at 2am, she doesn't have a lot of time. So she has to cover a lot of ground, on foot, to finish her quest. Throughout her day, we are treated to a plethora of cameos, from Fred Armisen to Olivia Wilde, Bradley Whitford and many more (there's too many to list off here and I don't want to spoil every surprise pop-up). Unlike what you may think the end of the world would feel like, this one is rather calm. Most likely panic and dread hit everyone, but now, on the final day, everyone seems at peace with whatever their life has been and will go out doing what they want to do. If you're a school teacher who always dreamed of doing stand-up, you'll set up a mic on an empty street and pursue your dream. If you're two bickering neighbors, perhaps you'll simply continue bickering until the final fleeting moment. Or perhaps you'll find the party of all parties and go out dancing, drinking and dancing until the big boom.
For Liza, her day starts one way and emotionally turns into another, as she grapples with her own present and past and comes to terms with her own self-worth. Lister-Jones is wonderful as the older Liza and Cailee Spaeny is a perfect partner in crime as the younger Liza. They are both great on their own, but together they play off each other in a magic and cathartic way. The cameos are all delightful, ranging from the emotional to the ridiculous, building up to an ending that both brought on tears and a resounding satisfaction. We've had to wait an extra year to see this end of the world gem and I'm thrilled to say that it was all the more satisfying coupled against the backdrop of today. "For me to count, you have to count too." May we all have such a revelation in our own trip back to everyday life.
GRADE: A
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY Daryl Wein, Zoe Lister-Jones STARRING Zoe Lister-Jones, Cailee Spaeny SELECTED AS PART OF THE 2021 SXSW FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFO: HOW IT ENDS