My Review of "Deaner '89"

Deaner '89 is a comedy coming of age story that was released in 2024. I wanted to check this movie out right away in my theatres because I loved the trailer. The problem was that the trailer advertised an entirely different movie than it actually is. There are elements of it in there but I felt a little bamboozled in the end.

The movie starts out with the introduction of Dean. He's this teenage kid in the middle of nowheresville Canada. It's also quite comical that the actor who plays Dean throughout the movie is this middle aged guy. Dean is actually narrating his story from the present day. We kind of see him as a successful man in the present so we're trying to see how he went from rags to riches.

It's sort of played out like a typical biographical movie template where you see he's got success but it goes to the past to see how he all started. This is kind of where the movie shined. I loved the over the top humor that they implemented in the ridiculous scenarios they give him. Dean also happens to be over the top Canadian. I happen to be a Canadian that grew up in the 80s so I recognize all of the tropes that they brought up. Others that haven't might find this comical because of how crazy Canada seemed back in those days but it's kind of based of what it really was.

In some ways I kind of had a rush of nostalgia and wonder. I'm not sure why heavy metal and rock and roll isn't as prevalent in Canada nowadays. We have such a deep rooted attachment to it. I kind of miss the music. The music was another really nice element of this movie.

Without giving too much away from this movie. Deeper into the movie Dean receives a heavy chest from his biological father. This sets out a journey of exploration for him. He's trying to figure out who he is and what it means for him. This movie then becomes a coming of age story telling us his discovery of his roots.

I liked that this movie told me a few things I didn't know about Canadian history. I think that they did it in a weird preachy way that pulled me out of the environment and story. At times this movie felt more like a classroom lesson than a fun comedy movie. I felt like the rug got pulled from under me and I was swindled when this started happening. One or two times isn't too bad but the movie started to feel a little preachy.

It also felt like they wanted to cram so much into this movie but with such a short period of time it felt weirdly paced. With a little editing and more focus on a simpler story this movie could have been way better. Why can't movies just be simple and fun anymore. There has to be some sort of political statement or something in them nowadays. It's exhausting and makes me not want to see them anymore, especially when we're not expecting to get into those talks in the movie.

There was a ton of potential in this movie. I liked Dean's wild and careless demeanor. I liked the setting, although I think they played upon the 80's as a joke one too many times. They had a stellar cast and the idea was amazing. I'm so saddened that this didn't even come close to my expectations of what it was supposed to be. Sometimes trailers are too good and end up ruining movies for us.

Overall, I had a few smirks here and there but I just didn't have as much fun as I was hoping. In fact, there were certain scenes where I really didn't care for the movie anymore. It's a shame because throughout the movie I saw grand potential. I unfortunately have to give this movie a 4.5 out of 10. I hope they try again because this could have been great.