"Ghostlight" is one of the best movies I've seen all year — only behind "Dune: Part 2."
If you haven't yet heard about this comedy drama though I don't blame you. Despite getting some buzz at the Sundance Film Festival this year and earning a perfect 100% fresh rating from Rotten Tomatoes, the movie earned just over $700,000 at the box office. I was lucky to see it thanks to a free screening provided by Letterboxd and IFC.
But now, you can finally watch it on AMC Plus starting this Friday (Aug. 30).
While AMC Plus might not be one best streaming services out there, it's got a surprising amount of quality shows and movies, including "Monsieur Spade," which was one of my favorite shows this year. Between that and "Ghostlight," the meager $4.99 you'd need for AMC Plus this month is probably worth it, even if you didn't watch anything else.
'Ghostlight' is a superb, intimate comedy drama — and a must-watch
I don't often use "heartwarming" as a term to define a movie. Maybe it's because I'm a cold-hearted Grinch, or that I find the term cloying or maybe I just don't watch many heartwarming movies. But "Ghostlight is undoubtedly one of the most heartwarming movies I've ever seen and I only mean that as a supreme compliment.
Set in the Chicago suburbs, "Ghostlight" stars the real-life family of father Keith Kupferer, daughter Katherine Kupferer and mother Tara Mallen as the fictional Dan, Daisy and Sharon Mueller, respectively. That may seem like stunt casting, but in this movie, it works and feels earned.
The part of Dan was initially written for Keith by writer Kelly O'Sullivan (h/t Roger Ebert) and when you watch the movie it's tough to tell he's even acting. The role fits him like a glove. You also have no problem believing this family is a family, and once you learn that they're a family in real life it all makes sense.
It's these performances that are the driving force of the movie. The story is good. It tells the tale of a family going through tough times and how a community theater production allows them to finally start moving forward. It's one of the funniest movies I've seen this year and also one of the saddest. But Keith's performance as the construction worker and father Dan, who is unexpectedly thrust into the role of Romeo in a local production of "Romeo and Juliet," is incredible.
If anything, he's maybe too good for a suburban dad who's never acted before. It's one of the few minor criticisms I have of the movie.
But arguably, he's outshined by his daughter Katherine as Daisy. Daisy is a typical moody teenager, clearly acting out as a cry for help. But she's also an incredibly talented high school theater actor and once she's ultimately cast in the community theater play as Mercutio you can see the talent of Daisy — and therefore Katherine — on full display. Thankfully, her being a talented actor is written into her part, because I'd never believe her as a novice thespian.
This movie really is good enough to earn $4.99 for a one-month AMC Plus subscription, and I don't say that lightly. But I guarantee you once you've watched it, you'll feel that it was money well spent.
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