Local movie gets wide release in fall 2018

“Kyle Wilson,” the first major motion picture from producers Greg and Julie Wilson, will receive wide release in Spartanburg this fall after a four-year run in Inman.

I first saw this film in spring 2015, and I was fortunate enough to see it regularly all the way through spring 2018. Each time I saw it, I found something different in it.

After seeing it a number of times, I have to say that I believe this is an awards contender.

“Kyle Wilson” is the story of the eponymous hero of the movie’s journey toward self-actualization. Along the way, he encounters a number of typical teen obstacles: loss, grief, heartache and confusion. But he faces each of these with grace, faith and a sense of humor.

The movie is one of the most dialogue heavy films that I have ever seen. The main character talks a lot, and both his dialogue and his monologues are littered with pop culture references. It’s not uncommon, too, for the main character to burst into song and dance, although those moments are relatively short.

Although the movie requires a sharp ear, careful listening pays tremendous dividends as the movie has much to say about many things: our collective obsession with pop culture and our complex relationships with faith, family and friends, for example.

If you’re patient, you’ll walk away from this movie with valuable insights.

For me, there is nothing more important to a movie than the main character, and the main character, Kyle, is such a refreshing take on a teenager, resisting simple categorization and revealing the humanity that we sometimes deny in our young people.

Many times throughout the movie, Kyle refers to himself as someone from a John Hughes film, but this character is more than a Hughesian stereotype. This is a real, complicated and interesting teenager.

I have seen the movie with others many times, and although there are moments where we laughed and a few moments where we wondered where the story was going, we were all sad when it was over because we know that there will never quite be a movie like this — not in our lifetimes, at least.

“Kyle Wilson” is a wonderful film, and although I am sad to see it leave Inman, I am excited that the rest of the world will have a chance to see this great movie. I think it’s going to be a smashing success.

I give “Kyle Wilson” four wonderful years out of four wonderful years.