Chatter Box Film

A review for the 2024 film This Too Shall Pass; directed by Rob Grant.

The film is based on a true story, and follows Simon (Maxwell Jenkins), a teenager growing up under strict Mormon parents. He falls in love with Shelly (Nikki Roumel), a girl he’s only known for a short amount of time. Shelly tells Simon that she’s leaving for Canada. With what feels like his last shot at freedom and at love so Simon grabs his friends, and they head to Canada to win the girl of his dreams. It doesn’t go the way he had hoped. What comes next is an adventure about first love, friendship, and self-discovery 

This Too Shall Pass is a fun movie. It opens with Simon sitting in the back of a police car, and instead of a normal flashback, we hear him telling the policeman what happened as they drive to jail. The story switches between the police car and flashbacks until we arrive at the police station, this was a very clever stylistic choice so we already know trouble has happened but we don’t know how yet, which keeps you watching.

The cast are all fantastic throughout all giving unique and talented strong performances. Simon’s group of friends — Chris (Jeremy Ray Taylor), Tim (Ben Cockell), John (Aidan Laprete), and James (Jaylin Webb) — all have very different personalities, but you can still tell they genuinely care about each other. The mix of characters and the way they bounce off each other is a big part of what makes the movie enjoyable. Every scene with the group feels like real friends hanging out, arguing, getting carried away, and then still having each other’s backs in the end. The comedy works well too — there are a lot of funny moments, not just jokes but little reactions and situations that feel naturally funny instead of forced. Certain characters even comment on the narration and it makes the film. More self-aware and funny. 

The visual look and style of the film is another highlight, with the bright and colourful outfits and settings. I also liked the cool jackets and boots the boy and girl characters wear  

The only thing I found a bit confusing at times was Misty (Katie Douglas). She’s an interesting character and definitely has presence —and I liked her cool jacket but some of her reactions were a little hard to understand. It sometimes felt like she was written to be mysterious or complicated, but without enough explanation for why she reacted the way she did in certain scenes. It didn’t ruin anything for me, and I still liked her character, I just found myself a little unsure of how to read her at a few moments. That might even be intentional because of her name, Misty. As her behaviour is supposed to feel a bit foggy or unclear.

Another thing I thought was a bit of a shame is that the film ends on a sudden “back to reality” moment. It pulls you out of the fun and brings everything down to a more serious note, but this was also clever as it added to the reality and realistic side of things. 

 I was lucky enough to interview the cast and director of the film. The cast told me they were able to improvise during filming, although some of those improvised moments only appear in the deleted scenes.

Overall, This Too Shall Pass is a great teen comedy with a talented cast and lots of laughs along the way. The friendships in the movie feel genuine, and you can tell the cast all had great chemistry and bonded well with each other. The romance between several of the characters adds some heartfelt moments that give the story more emotional weight. What makes the plot even better is that it’s based on a true story, which makes the wild moments and the touching parts feel more meaningful because you know lots of it happened in real life.

It’s a film full of heart, friendship, love, and a few emotional moments along the way. Even with the chaos and humour, some scenes feel realistic and relatable, and that made the movie stand out more. This Too Shall Pass is a fun, warm, and memorable film that delivers both laughs and feelings without taking itself too seriously.

Check out our video interview with the cast and director here for This Too Shall Pass.