Sometimes I going into a movie knowing very little. In the case of sci-fi film “Lars Shrike Walks the Night”, it was just the title, the genre and the star — six-time Emmy winner Kelsey Grammer. He’s a television and voice acting legend, who has also delivered some terrific, memorable performances in movies.
As “Lars Shrike” unfolds, we see Grammer’s title character wandering around a mysterious location. He says he’s escaped from prison, but he doesn’t remember much else. His thoughts in his mind serve as our narration… but not entirely. Lars interacts with some random people and creatures. He’s not really sure what to believe, and neither are we.
You can tell that the budget of “Lars Shrike” is low (which isn’t a negative — look at $750,000 “Obsession” earning over $400 million worldwide). But the camerawork isn’t stellar, the editing’s a little shaky, and the vibe/atmosphere doesn’t make the experience incredibly compelling. Lars learns a little bit more about what’s going on and makes his way to a couple other locations, but the pacing is still too slow and the story definitely feels stretched-out.
But in the back of my mind I kept thinking, “Yes, Kelsey has been in some smaller movies and other films you can tell he did for a paycheck, but the majority of the time there’s a legitimate reason why he would want to be part of a project.” He’s the star and producer here. At about the halfway mark of the movie, Lars visits a library and has a conversation with a librarian. She’s played by Kati Schwartz, who will next take-on the character of Rebekkah in David Fincher and Quentin Tarantino’s “Cliff Booth” movie, with Brad Pitt reprising his Oscar-winning “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” role. Schwartz and Grammer are very good in this extended library scene.
And then Lars makes his way to a house. This is the third act of “Lars Shrike Walks the Night”. Scenes at this home, between Lars and a man named Richard (played by David Clennon), take you by complete surprise. They change everything you thought you knew about this movie, including why the first two acts are presented, and unfold, in the ways that they do. I still would’ve altered the first two acts in a few ways to make the experience feel stronger as a whole, but I give a lot of credit to writer / director Gary Walkow for pulling-off a satisfying conclusion. It’s an intelligent section, with legitimate, thought-provoking commentary.
The point of “Lars Shrike Walks the Night” reminds me of two other films I quite like, but I’m not going to spoil them here. I’ll give you clues: One is from 2006 with an A-list comedian in a rare dramatic role. The other is from 2012, directed by an Oscar-nominated duo. “Lars” isn’t quite as good as those two movies, but it continues a legacy for Walkow in bold, cool ways.
LCJ GRADE: B-
Running Time: 85 min.