Why Critics and Audiences Are Divided on Jenna Ortega’s ‘Finestkind’

Now available on Paramount+, Brian Helgeland’s crime thriller Finestkind polarized audiences and critics upon release in December 2023. Popular Hollywood starlet Jenna Ortega stars in the film as Mabel, a petty drug dealer who meets a group of shipwrecked fishermen and drives a wedge between estranged half-brothers Tom (Ben Foster) and Charlie (Toby Wallace).

Although the film has fared better among general audiences and casual moviegoers than professional film critics, both groups cite similar reasons for its divisive detractors. Ortega fans on the fence about giving Finestkind a chance should prepare for excellent performances and a compelling family tale lost in a sea of confounding melodramatic storytelling and tonal inconsistencies.

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Release Date

December 15, 2023

Runtime

126 Minutes

‘Finestkind’ Sets Up a Great Story

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Brian Helgeland (A Knight’s Tale, 42) wrote and directed Finestkind, an American crime thriller concerning estranged brothers, Charlie and Tom Elridge. The two estranged siblings reunite after Charlie asks Tom, a scallop fisher, to take him on a high-seas expedition to escape his dreary life. Tom agrees and introduces Tom to his fishing crew, including Costa (Ismael Cruz Córdoba), Nunes (Scotty Tovar), and Skeemo (Aaron Stanford). Soon after the voyage begins, Tom’s boat, Harmony, sinks and forces the quintet to swim to safety.

Upon surviving, the five men celebrate at a local bar in Massachusetts, where Charlie meets drug dealer Mabel. Charlie’s father, Gary (Tim Daly), urges his son against further fishing expeditions. Meanwhile, Tom’s father, Ray (Oscar-winning movie legend Tommy Lee Jones), encourages him to lead a drilling expedition in his boat, Finestkind. When Tom is fired from his job, he agrees to join Ray, while Charlie begins a torrid affair with Mabel.

As the movie sails toward a riveting rivalry between brothers stoked by Mabel, it suddenly redirects course when Tom and Charlie learn Ray is dying of stomach cancer. The melodramatic turn loses tonal focus and concentrates on Tom’s dogged attempt to keep Finestkind in his father’s possession before he dies. To pay the $200,000 grand necessary to retain the boat, Mabel leads a harrowing heroin-smuggling expedition that further muddies the tenor of the movie.

Critics Hated the Tonal Shift

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Despite Helgeland’s track record and the excellent cast, Finestkind was rejected by most critics upon release in 2023. Boasting a 29% Rotten Tomatoes score and a 44 Metascore, the consensus among critics suggests that Helgeland’s ponderous direction and lack of narrative focus led to more confusion than amusement. Many critics recognize disparate flashes of brilliance that never tie together coherently, much less resonate with satisfying durability.

According to The Hollywood Reporter’s 5/10 score review, critic Michael Rechtshaffen notes:

“Although anchored by a number of strong performances, particularly those of Ben Foster and fresh-faced Toby Wallace as estranged half-brothers attempting to find common ground despite their different upbringings, Helgeland’s meandering film still feels stuck in another place in time.”

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Similarly, IndieWire‘s Robert Daniels couldn’t get past the confounding plot, adding, “As I watched this turgid muddle, a messy ball of nonsensical threads and worse performances, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Roger Ebert’s old maxim: No good film is too long, and no bad film is too short.”

Speaking of Roger Ebert, Nell Minow’s review of Finestkind for the site also notes how the story loses focus, stating:

“Helgeland wants us to be caught up in the story of the brothers getting more and more mired in the consequences of their bad choices, but the most genuine relationship in the film is in a brief scene with the exes played by Jones and Davidovich. By the time Charlie and Mabel are discussing Moby Dick while having sex, the ship has really run aground.”

Noting the ludicrous plot twists that defy belief, The Playlist’s Rodrigo Perez spots some redeeming value, declaring, “Knock Helgeland’s unpersuasive plot, his broad writing platitudes, and some of the more ridiculous twists of the genre all you want, but the filmmaker at least seems to know, understand, and capture the milieu and people of these communities. Sure, that’s not enough to save Finestkind, but there is something there.” That “something there” Perez mentions was received slightly better by audiences, although Finestkind remains polarizing among them as well.

Audience Responses Vary Drastically

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Finestkind boasts a 6.1 IMDb rating and a commensurate 61% Popcorn Meter rating, indicating a much higher positive audience response. Yet, digging into the audience response, the movie is far more divisive than among critics. For instance, Finestkind’s Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcorn Meter page ranges from 1 to 5-star reviews, with many offering full-throated support and others struggling to finish the film.

As Ray M notes in their 5-star review:

“A very underrated movie. The characters are very well-developed and deep. The relationship between father and son illuminates an unbreakable shared bond. Tommy Lee Jones delivers a stellar performance, as does the whole cast. Ben Jones brings a conflicted character to life and has the audience engulfed in the conflict between doing what he knows is right and trying to save his father’s dreams. Highly recommended!”

Further supporting the movie is David F, who calls Finestkind:

“Absolutely outstanding. For once, a portrait of family relationships where patience and love prevail in the end. The self-sacrifice is perfect and the follow your dreams message is wonderful. To all the film snobs that failed to cry in the end, go rewatch terms of endearment. I loved the characters and the solutions. It was entertaining and evoked emotion.”

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Not All Viewers Loved It…

While critics and general audiences agree that Ben Foster gives a terrific movie performance, several latter members skewered the muddled narrative. As Liza M notes in their 1.5-star assessment, the film:

“Literally sucked. The movie feels like a tale of two stories. The first half is completely different to the second and the characters start acting completely different. Such a waste of the great acting skills of good actors such as Jenna Ortega.”

Proving the film’s polarizing nature is Christopher L, whose 3-star review states:

“Swing and a miss. Entertaining enough to watch, but you can drive that fishing boat through the plot holes in this movie! Like what the hell happened to the guys that stole from them? And who set them up? These and many other questions do not ever get answered… and not in a good way.”

Despite its promising premise and Foster’s stellar performance, critics and audiences agree that Helgeland loses grip on the story he’s trying to tell. The result is uneven at best, and boring at worst, with little redeeming value regarding the brotherly bond between Tom and Charlie. General audiences were slightly more forgivable than critics, but the glaring misgivings noted by both groups left Finestkind lost at sea. Finestkind is available to stream on Paramount+.

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