Milton (Ben Kingsley) lives a monotonous, quiet life in a small town in rural Pennsylvania. He goes about his typical routine, watching the same television shows every evening, taking care of his garden, attending council meetings, and repeatedly calling his daughter, Denise (Zoe Winters). One evening, a UFO crashes into his garden, and no one believes him when he tells them. After a few days, an alien emerges, whom he begins taking care of, and names them Jules (Jade Quon). Jules doesn’t speak and only communicates by drawing pictures of cats. Two fellow senior citizens, Sandy (Harriet Harris) and Joyce (Jane Curtin) snoop around and discover Milton harbouring Jules, and they all band together to help the alien fix their ship.
It was interesting to see non-verbal communication done so well since Jules doesn’t speak or emote during the film. You start to think midway through that this alien is just a robot, not paying attention to these strange senior citizens. But, through kindness, they cultivate a relationship with Jules, who later protects them in dangerous situations.
I didn’t see this film’s trailer; I only read a brief synopsis and decided to take a chance. I was glad I did. This sweet film was comedic yet dealt with real issues, such as watching parents age, estrangement from family, and death. Usually, I’m not really into films dealing with family, but the film was more relatable than most. I found this film warm and like a hug because of the setting. My grandmother lives in a small village like the one in the movie. The portrayal of small-town USA was perfect, even down to the repeated requests to the village council for traffic signs/signals at certain intersections. The authenticity, for me, was what made me like it so much.
With some of the film’s events, one might expect it to be a little more emotionally hard-hitting, but honestly, it’s not that deep. For me, it’s not bad; sometimes, I don’t need to be provoked into deep thought; I want to be entertained. I think I had the benefit of walking into the film with no expectations, and that’s why I enjoyed it so much. This is a good choice if you want a movie that’s a brain break and still entertaining. However, I do have to issue a warning – if you have a hard time with dead and dying cats, you may have an issue with portions of the film.
Jules will be released in the UK on December 1st 2023
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7.2
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I’m a Data Analyst, from the land of Matthew McConaughey. I’m an avid movie-goer and love seeing films in theaters. My most recent favorite films are Good Time, Only Lovers Left Alive, TENET, and England is Mine. When I’m not at the movies, I’m either reading or watching obscene amount of true crime and historical documentaries.
