The End of Oak Street
August 11th, 2026
MOVIE: THE END OF OAK STREET
STARRING: ANNE HATHAWAY, EWAN MCGREGOR, MAISY STELLA, CHRISTIAN CONVERY
DIRECTED BY: DAVID ROBERT MITCHELL
AMovieGuy.com’s RATING: 3 ½ STARS (Out of 4)
RATED: PG-13
RUN TIME: 99 MINUTES
There is so much to love about a movie when it feels original. The End of Oak Street may not be entirely original; there are plenty of stories involving wormholes, space and time twisting, and, of course, a plethora of movies about people being attacked by dinosaurs. But when all of those elements are done right, with the energetic whimsy of a child and the grand imagination of an author like Jules Verne, what you get is something as delightful as The End of Oak Street. Director David Robert Mitchell has crafted an exciting, unexpectedly hilarious, and thrilling adventure about a family trying to keep everything together when dinosaurs invade their neighborhood.
The setting is the 1980s, in a quiet suburban neighborhood of Detroit, where all the kids ride their bikes around town, block parties are underway, and grills are sizzling with hot dogs. Our main characters are the Platt family: mother Denise (Anne Hathaway), father Greg (Ewan McGregor), eldest daughter Audrey (Maisy Stella), and son Brian (Christian Convery). Things are not all happy, as Denise and Greg are currently experiencing marital strife, while Audrey struggles to fit in with her friends, and Brian fears the local bully at his school. Nothing will be quite as scary, however, as the unexplainable phenomenon that happens next.
Lights flash in the sky, the power goes out, and the heat turns up. That’s because a giant part of the town has become a prehistoric land filled with massive dinosaurs, pterodactyls in the sky, killer crocodiles in the water, and a T-Rex lurking in the backyard. Needless to say, the Platt family finds themselves in a fight for survival from all sides, hoping to keep their family together and avoid becoming dino food.
From the jump, it’s easy to say that The End of Oak Street will remind audiences of early Steven Spielberg films, from E.T. to Jurassic Park (obviously!), as well as Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist. What truly makes it unique, however, is that it has the sharp edge of the director who made It Follows. This is not your romanticized version of dinosaurs brought to life; these creatures have an aesthetic that looks both hideous and authentic. The threat of death is real, as Mitchell never allows the audience to feel comfortable or able to predict who will live or die.
It’s this “just go with it” approach that makes The End of Oak Street an absolute blast. And it’s not just all CGI flash. The cinematography by Mike Gioulakis is one of the big stars of the film, using deep focus, split-diopter shots, and close-ups of the characters’ faces as they react in shock. It also features another great performance from Anne Hathaway, who wields a shotgun, unleashes heartbreaking emotion, and proves she can do just about everything at this point.
There are moments of dark humor and moments of genuine terror. The science fiction of it all needs no explanation because the unexplained is what makes it so spectacular. The premise is simple: What if there were dinosaurs in your suburban neighborhood, and how exactly would you survive? That’s the true definition of a popcorn flick. The End of Oak Street is a smashing success.
3 ½ STARS
THE END OF OAK STREET IS PLAYING IN THEATERS FRIDAY, AUGUST 14TH, 2026.
Written by: Leo Brady
