A sweet film with a talented cast and an evident love for the aspiring creative, The Comic Shop is well-meaning in its temperament, but a little less confident in its execution as it injects a dramatic streak that doesn’t flow with its initial personality.
The titular comic shop is Mike’s World, a small venture that thrives on its independence. Run by the passionate, if overwhelmed Mike (Jesse Metcalfe), the store is sadly struggling and, despite his best efforts, on the verge of closing; the situation not remotely helped by the opening of a nearby franchise store.
Unbeknownst to Mike at the time of their meeting, young comic enthusiast – and aspiring artist – Brandon (Micah Giovanni) may be the key to the shop’s saving, but that kind of revelation takes a bit of time for Mike to come around to, as he initially views Brandon as little more than a customer he can extort for cheap labour. The lad is happy to immerse himself in Mike’s world (and Mike’s World) though. It gets him to work on his own illustrations, he learns the ins and outs of the retail sector, and it gets him away from his controlling, sports-obsessed father, who doesn’t see the value in Brandon’s artistry.
The relationship that forms between Mike and Brandon is genuinely quite sweet, and had the film focused on their dynamic more so, The Comic Shop could’ve ended up being a delightful, scrappy dramedy of sorts. Jonathan L. Bowen‘s tonally confused feature is also at its best when it’s utilising Tristan Mays as Mike’s ride-or-die, Alex. Both directly and indirectly, she pushes a lot of the emotional beats forward with her character’s kindness and wit, and when she steps out of the film for considerable periods, it’s noticeable.
Her disappearance from the film has a lot to do with the introduction of Chad (Trevor Einhorn), the owner of the aforementioned franchise set-up that threatens to derail Mike’s business. His father being the backer of his venture means Chad has that immediate slimy, disconnected psyche that paints him in a villainous light (being named Chad doesn’t help either), but he’s a little bit too caricaturish in his creation. Business rivalries and projected machismo is all well and good, but Chad never feels like a real person in a movie that feels as if it’s aiming for such a mentality; there’s also a massive misjudgement on Bowen’s end in how it chooses to escalate Chad’s sabotaging actions, with the film wildly submitting to an inconsistent nature in its backend that feels like drama merely for drama’s sake.
It’s a shame that such decisions result in a challenging pace for the 95 minute feature, as there’s a worthy message at The Comic Shop‘s core. It’s quite inspiring for a film to drive home the importance of holding on to your dreams and creativity, even in the face of burden and doubt. There’s a celebration worth having for the independent-minded, and there’s still a great deal of value in Bowen’s effort in spite of odd creative choices.
TWO AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
The Comic Shop is now available to rent in the United States on such digital platforms as Prime Video, AppleTV, Fandango at Home, Google/YouTube Movies and Microsoft.
