"LINOLEUM" // SXSW 2022
In the opening shot of LINOLEUM, Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan) sees a car fall out of the sky. No one seems to experience this but him and it sets up an intriguing memory piece that has shades of Charlie Kauffman sprinkled throughout. Jim is a children's TV host, teaching kids about the wonders of science. He was once an astronomy student at Cornell with exceptional promise. Now he's suck into a daily sadness, working for a network that doesn't quite have the confidence that they once did and has sent his show to a very un-kids middle of the night hour. The network keeps promising that he's a shoe in for a primetime slot, he just needs to be patient. Meanwhile at home, Gaffigan's marriage to his wife Erin (Rhea Seehorn), who used to co-host the kids show with him, has fallen apart and their plans for a quiet divorce has not yet been sprung up on their teenage daughter Nora (Katelyn Nacon). Even more stress comes from his father (Roger Hendricks Simon) who is in an elderly home suffering from dementia, barely able to even recognize his son.
Strangely, a man moves in on his block that looks like a better, younger version of him (he's also played by Gaffigan). His teenage son (Gabriel Rush) befriends Cameron's daughter Nora at school and begin to find comfort in each other, two misfit toys in a world that slowly makes less and less sense. Though a car falling out of the sky doesn't make the news, a satellite landing in Cameron's backyard does. So he decides to try and pull himself together by using the broken parts and build a Rocketship, so he can do "something fantastic," like he hoped to in his youth. Along with Cameron's journey, we also follow both Nora and Erin's journey of self-discovery and self-rediscovery, respectively, with just as delicate of a touch as Cameron's storyline is given.
Writer/Director Colin West has crafted a beautiful, strange and original film here. It's wonderfully crafted, with layers upon layers of magic. Both dramatic, funny and affirming, the cast are all dynamic. Gaffigan and Seehorn are both wonderful and Nacon and Rush bring a lovely bit of complexity that you aren't fully expecting to see. With the blend of science fiction, romance, dramatic longing and wonder, LINOLEUM is a fantastic, and emotional, surprise.
GRADE: A
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Colin West STARRING Jim Gaffigan, Rhea Seehorn, Katelyn Nacon, Gabriel Rush, Tony Shalhoub, Michael Ian Black FEATURED AS PART OF THE 2022 SXSW FILM FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFO: LINOLEUM