Rent Armageddon Time (2022)

A coming-of-age drama full of nostalgia - Armageddon Time review by Philip in Paradiso

Armageddon Time is a typical coming-of-age social drama, set in 1980, in Queens (in New York City). The central character is a young Jewish teenager and his African-American friend, who have met at the local state school. Paul Graff, a Jewish boy, befriends Johnny, a black kid. Paul comes from a middle-class family and is close to his maternal grandfather, Aaron (Anthony Hopkins). The family is not wealthy, but far better off than Johnny's. Johnny comes from a poor, broken home; he lives with his grandmother, who is ill. Johnny gets in trouble at school: he is a disruptive pupil and the teacher picks on him, presumably out of racially motivated prejudice, because Johnny is black.

The movie is about the 2 boys' friendship, and how Paul's family responds to the situation. Reality, in its harsh and unforgiving nature, soon encroaches on the 2 boys' innocent friendship. The film is good and sensitive in every respect. However, I found it not only plausible and realistic; I also found it highly predictable. Nothing happens along the way that surprises you: it is a good film, worth watching, but hardly an earth-shattering masterpiece, contrary to what some reviewers have claimed, in my view.

Well-acted if underwhelming critique of 1980s America - Armageddon Time review by PD

This well-acted drama set at the time of Reagan's election has its moments but sadly ultimately fails in its depiction of its central theme of racial inequality.

James Gray's latest is presumably drawing on his own childhood to reflect on prejudice, privilege, and the eye-opening dangers of silence and complacency in American society, but whilst the intentions are admirable, the film isn't up to exploring the nuances of such complex topics in any depth and under-commits to sharing the truths of racial disparity when it comes to the American dream. Anthony Hopkins is unsurprisingly excellent as chorus-figure grandfather Aaron, whilst Michael Banks Repata turns in a worthy performance as his grandson Paul Graff, with good chemistry between him and Jaylin Webb as friend Johnny Davis - the childlike naivete of both is well-handled. But sadly Webb's character rarely gets beyond stereotype, his concerns being always in the background just as the privileged Graffs' are highlighted, and this means therefore that the attempts to explore class and race issues through the eyes of a child and his growing perspective fall rather flat. That's not to say that there aren't some telling moments - for example, when teacher, Mr. Turkeltaub's actions reveal that he almost expects delinquency out of Johnny, even when he’s not the culprit of classroom disruptions, thus neatly revealing the prejudice that Black children misbehave more often than their white counterparts, and these examples grow larger in scale as the film progresses. Yet, frustratingly, nothing ever comes from them on screen besides growing pains for Paul and his family, and whilst the family scenes are very well-done, this feels very uncomfortable indeed given the film's intended target. Ultimately, Gray's attempt to criticise how privilege paves the way to power and contributes to various levels of playing fields in pursuit of 'success', comes off as rather lazy and uninspiring.

Yet another Jewish victim sob story. - Armageddon Time review by AS

I was drawn to this film by the presence of Anthony Hopkins -- one of my all time favorite actors. I was appalled to find that sections of the story could have been written by the Ukrainian propaganda center about how Jews have endured a unique level of suffering, above anybody else. Try looking at the slavery conditions endured by millions of Irish people. Very disappointing ...