Little Death
Little Death
A middle-aged filmmaker on the verge of a breakthrough. Two kids in search of a lost backpack. A small dog a long way from home.
Kevin Ward reviewedJuly 2, 2025
David Schwimmer stars as Martin, a television writer hoping to make the jump to the silver screen. His neuroses and prescription addiction has put a strain on he and his wife’s (Jena Malone) relationship. And when his film’s potential financier has some notes about a change to his protagonist, the narrative takes a turn. Reminded me of Charlie Kaufman’s Adaptation for the first half of the film (one of my favorites, btw). The second half of the film presents a POV shift and follows a young couple of friends (Dominic Fike and Talia Ryder) trying to make a prescription drug score that goes a bit haywire. Ryder continues to impress with her performance here (probably my favorite of the film). Criticisms of big pharma bubble under the surface of the narrative of the entire film. Aside from that, there’s scarce little connective tissue between the first half and second half, at least on first viewing. I kind of loved the big swings, though and it definitely feels like one of those films that has a lot more to unpack. I say check it out. There’s a better than average chance you may hate it though. So….there’s that too. 😁