Jim Gaffigan is best known as a stand up comedian, famous for his bits on food and family. In fact, many may not even recognize his lengthy filmography outside of his renowned stand up specials. I certainly was. Even though it’s not uncommon for comedians to venture into acting and even see success (see Robin Williams if you’re incredulous), Gaffigan certainly seemed to fly under the radar. However, with Linoleum finally hitting streaming, I expect that opinion to drastically change.
Linoleum follows Cameron Edwin, a local tv host of a kid’s science show (think Bill Nye The Science Guy). Cameron’s world begins to turn upside down as he sees a car fall from the sky. Quickly, Cameron’s life starts to fall apart, and the only thing that continues to keep him moving forward is his kids and his love of space and ambition for space travel.
While Gaffigan gives a standout performance in a dual role as Cameron and new neighbor Kent, the entire cast delivers perfect performances. There is not a single bad performance here. Rhea Seehorn and Katelyn Nacon round out the Edwin family as wife Erin and daughter Nora respectively. Both are able to showcase their skillsets across the length of the film and it really works. While Gaffigan serves as the life or death of the film, the supporting performances help uplift the film to an upper echelon of acting prowess. In addition, the immense chemistry, especially between Nora and her male friend Marc, lends itself to the greatness of the performances.
Where the film really shines, however, is in it’s writing. It’s smart, witty, and the script knows how to weave between comedy and drama seamlessly. That is a testament to writer/director Colin West, who pulls double duty to make sure that the film feels great upon viewing. Not only that, but West recognizes when aspects of the story need to be revealed, so the story unfolds for the viewer at the same time as the characters.
Linoleum doesn’t do much to wow the eye. It’s plainly shot, and aside from some really great throwback-style clips of the aforementioned science show, it really doesn’t do anything to stand out visually. Yet, the film doesn’t really need to either. The focus here is on the story, yet I do wish there was more to the visual style as well. It also struggled to find where to end the film and missed out on a couple prime closing opportunities to drag the story out just a little longer. Unfortunately, this felt unnecessary and muddied the end slightly.
Final Thoughts
If you had told me that one of the more emotional, impactful performances of 2023 would come from Jim Gaffigan, I’d think you were crazy. Yet here we are, standing at the crossroads of expectations and reality, seeing what can play out with original ideas, great writing and standout acting. I wish more studios would invest in Indie ideas like this one, because Linoleum truly succeeds where it wants to. Despite it’s few missteps, I was genuinely impressed, and I encourage you to watch it as well.
