The Peanut Butter Falcon
“The Peanut Butter Falcon’s lesson in positive masculinity contributes to the ongoing conversation about what it means to be a man in the modern era.”
Title: The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)
Directors: Tyler Nilson 👨🏼🇺🇸 and Michael Schwartz 👨🏼🇺🇸
Writers: Tyler Nilson 👨🏼🇺🇸 and Michael Schwartz 👨🏼🇺🇸
User-submitted review by Michael Frank 👨🏼🇺🇸
Technical: 4.5/5
Few movies in 2019 have given me reason to smile as I walked out of the theatre. Titles like Marriage Story, Parasite, or Ad Astra may have stirred the emotions or driven home important subjects, but I can’t recall the year’s offerings being particularly enjoyable to watch. That said, after The Peanut Butter Falcon, I pretty much skipped out of the theater with a huge smile on my face.
The film follows Zak (Zack Gottsagen), a young man with Down syndrome who dreams of becoming a professional wrestler. To pursue those dreams, he runs away from his caretaker Eleanor (Dakota Johnson) and teams up with Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a thief who’s also on the run after blowing up supplies from rival fishermen. They decide to travel down the North Carolina coast, so that Zak can find his wrestling hero and Tyler can begin a new life in Florida.
The film combines the picturesque setting of the Southeastern coastline with powerful acting by LaBeouf, Johnson, and leading man Gottsagen. With only three characters to drive the story, each pulls their weight in bringing to life the smart script from Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz. Gottsagen is a force to be reckoned with, and his magnetism cannot be understated.
The cinematography of Nigel Bluck uses a sprawling landscape, complete with rivers, marshes, plains, and the swampy goodness of the South, to create a beautiful viewing experience that urges you to float on a raft all day. The unadorned mood might feel slow as you watch, but actually hums along at a 97-minute runtime. Thanks to decisive editing that weeds out unimportant scenes or unnecessary backstories, each conversation still manages to receive time to breathe, to pause, and to migrate its way to a conclusion.
This feature debut for the team of Nilson and Schwartz deserves recognition, and indicates what the two can do if given the resources. The Peanut Butter Falcon took an odd path to production, made possible because of one person: its leading man. The directors found Gottsagen first, and then this story followed.
Though it can be sappy at times, The Peanut Butter Falcon effectively exhibits love and a warm, warm heart.
Gender: 2.5/5
Does it pass the Bechdel Test? NOPE
This movie struggles to give time and depth to female characters. For starters, The Peanut Butter Falcon centers around three characters—Tyler (LaBeouf), Eleanor (Johnson), and Zak (Gottsagen)—and two of those are men.
Eleanor’s character appears to have depth at first. She displays cunning and an impressive array of tracking skills in finding Zak after he runs away from the nursing home, only to get sucked into their trip down the coast. Beyond that, however, her story feels stunted. Just one scene mentions her family’s affluent situation, only to never be brought up again. And while the film clearly portrays Eleanor’s intelligence and care for Zak, their relationship sits in shadow to the one Zak holds with Tyler.
Furthermore, the plotline in which she falls for the rough-and-tumble Tyler feels lazily crafted. She gives in to his charms and even lets herself get tricked into being handcuffed to a car, simply because Tyler gave her a kiss. As the only significant female character in the film, she lacks sufficient development.
Behind the camera, Nilson and Schwartz surrounded themselves with producers and editors who were also primarily men. Perhaps due to this perspective, The Peanut Butter Falcon does excel at its exploration of masculinity and emphasizes the importance of nurturing others. LaBeouf puts together a mumbling but charismatic performance that touches on mentorship as he teaches Zak how to swim and helps him train into tip-top shape. Meanwhile, Zak learns to be self-sustaining, to be confident in his body, and about the ideals of true manhood: following your dreams, believing in yourself, and having a killer handshake with your best friends. Nilson and Schwartz’s lesson in positive masculinity strengthens the story and contributes to the ongoing conversation about what it means to be a man in the modern era.
Race: 2/5
Let’s start with the crew: White men made this film, and white women fill the gaps in roles such as executive producers, costume designers, and makeup artists. Regardless of the joy and positivity the movie brings, it misses the mark in inclusive hiring and cannot be overlooked. The Peanut Butter Falcon is a white, white film.
The only characters of color come in the form of Blind Jasper John (Wayne Dehart) and his family and friends, who help Zak and Tyler as they move down the Carolinas. Blind Jasper John blends comedy and heartfelt dialogue, even if his part could hardly be smaller. Still, Dehart gives respect to the role, doing a lot with the little he was given.
Bonus for Disability: +1.00
An actor with Down syndrome, Gottsagen, drives the film and constitutes its best part. Better yet, the story goes beyond disability and follows Zak’s dreams and experiences. We see him live on his own, overcome major fears, learn how to swim, shoot a gun, and even wrestle a man much bigger than him. Neither does the film paint an overly idealistic world; daily difficulties manifest in how others see Zak, such as the kids who make fun of him or even through Eleanor, who initially thinks he needs to be looked after for every second of the day.
In short, The Peanut Butter Falcon crafts an entire story around a character with Down syndrome, played authentically by a man with Down syndrome. The filmmakers might not have developmental disabilities themselves, but this is still a great story and a step in the right direction.
Bonus for Body Diversity: +1.00
The Peanut Butter Falcon radiates body positivity, focusing on the transformation of Zak's insecurities about his strength and body into pure confidence, helped along through the support and mentorship of good friends. Thanks to powerful montages, like seeing Zak picking up a tree, getting drunk off moonshine, and victoriously throwing his opponent in a wrestling match, you’ll leave the film feeding off its empowering messages about body confidence.
Mediaversity Grade: B- 3.67/5
The Peanut Butter Falcon lacks diversity in some respects, missing people of color in both cast and crew. The few non-white characters who do exist see themselves in small parts that dip into stereotype. But when the film succeeds, it does so with flying colors. Nilson and Schwartz cultivate body positivity, healthy masculinity, and confidence building. It makes serious strides when it comes to its inclusion of disability and benefits greatly from Gottsagen’s personal storytelling.
The goodness of the film shines through, and you can see that everyone’s hearts were in the right place. Points are given to those that make an effort, and The Peanut Butter Falcon certainly makes an effort. In the end, audiences won’t recall what was missing; rather, their minds will be full of wrestlers, warriors, and the widest smiles you can imagine.
Like The Peanut Butter Falcon? Try these other journeys to self-discovery.
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