5-25-77

There is practically nobody under the age of 60 now who knows what it was like to see Star Wars in a cinema before it was widely known. Even those lucky few will struggle to imagine what it might have been like to see it before its release. One of those who did was director Patrick Read Johnson, but not because, in those days, he had any influence in the film industry. He was just a kid who happened to be in the right place at the right time. Decades later, he has decided to tell his story.

The best shot in 5-25-77 is the first one, which delicately breaks the fourth wall before showing us John Francis Daley, playing the teenage Johnson, sitting alone in his bedroom undergoing a process of realisation. As 10CC’s I’m Not In Love plays in the background,. we see his face gradually transform. It’s a lot of trust to place in a young actor but Daley pulls it off, and Johnson then doubles down by cutting to an even younger version of himself (Merrick Johnson) sitting in a cinema seat between his parents, wearing the same expression as he watches 2001: A Space Odyssey. This film is every bit as important a reference point within the story as George Lucas’ effort, not simply in elation to the kid’s developing love of cinema, but as a thematic representation of what it means to strive for intellectual progress.

Like most small towns, the place where our hero is growing up does not show much respect for the intellectual. Patrick thoroughly alienates himself with his obsessive pursuit of a directorial career, exhausting the patience of the few friends and siblings not embarrassed to be seen with him by repeatedly casting them in his creative yet amateurish productions. These are explored primarily through montage, though we also get to see some of his rather lovely model work (he would go on to do work of this sort professionally for the likes of V, Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Warlock). Nevertheless, he has the devoted support of his mother (Colleen Camp) and is not completely lacking in the ability to attract girls.

Young Patrick’s hero is Silent Running director Douglas Trumball, because he’s inspired by the idea of making films outside the system, but he lacks the gumption to start phoning around and find a way to meet his hero – it takes his mother to do that. The journey which follows will see him encounter other people in the industry, including Herb Lightman (Austin Pendleton) and a young Steven Spielberg. It will also seem him exploring the industrial Light and Magic studio at a pivotal moment in history, resulkting in that trip to the screening room which changes everything. The film doesn’t stop here, however, recognising it as one moment in a more complex personal progression (Dave Bowman seeing the obelisk but not yet touching it), and focusing on what happens after he gets back home, his excitement building as we move toward the moment when Star Wars will hit cinemas.

Was this a moment of redemption for nerdy kids who loved science fiction? The film suggests that life is not that easy and that there’s no use waiting around for some deus ex machina to justify one’s choices. This is a sensible approach to take and the story is well drawn. Unfortunately it’s also at least half an hour too long, suffering from that familiar problem whereby a writer/director telling a personal story can’t see what needs to be cut out. There’s a lot of unnecessary repetition which tests patience of the audience and serves to dilute the film’s emotional impact. A bit of tightening up in the edit would have done the film a world of good.

There’s still some good work here. Daley, in almost every scene, acquits himself well, and Steve Coulter shines as long-suffering best friend Bill. If they look strangely young, that’s because most of the filming was completed in 2006. Johnson has been tinkering with the film ever since, before finally getting it to the point of release – mirroring a running joke within it about his inability to bring projects to completion. In places, his devotion really pays off. There’s some gorgeous model work here too, seamlessly blended into the live action footage. In the end, though, less would have been more, and a film which had the potential to make a big impact instead becomes just another coming of age tale – likeable but failing to inspire the passion Johnson clearly feels.

5-25-77 is on UK digital now (101 Films).