Movie Review: The Map of Tiny Perfect Things

I just got back from a trip, and you know what that means: movie reviews! These days, I take some time before I leave to download movies that look like they’d be interesting. I typically grab around 5-10, so that I have a choice up in the air. This time through, I came across The Map of Tiny Perfect Things on Amazon Prime. Basically, it’s a teenage version of Groundhog Day, except instead of being alone in the day that keeps repeating, Phil and Rita are both trapped in it together.

With a premise like that, how could I say no?

I’m very pleased to say that the movie delivered on the premise. There are a growing number of time loop movies out there, and one would think the territory they can explore is fairly limited. So far, that’s proven to be wrong. This movie takes the well-established trope and injects enough new stuff into it to make it feel fresh and original. Yes, it’s still a romanticomedy, but if that’s what you’re looking for, what’s the matter? It would be like complaining a Snickers tastes too Snickery, when what you really wanted to eat was a Snickers. Does not compute.

When you get down to it, a time loop movie needs a few essential elements. First off, it needs to establish how the main character(s) are dealing with the loop, and second, it needs some sort of a way out of the loop. (I suppose you could have a movie where they’re just stuck in the loop forever, but that sounds more like an art film, and who wants that when you could eat a Snickers?) This movie does a great job of showing how two different characters would approach a time loop differently.

As with most time loop movies, however, explaining too much of the film would likely get in the way of actually enjoying it. So I’ll leave it at that for now. I gave it a 9/10, and I heartily recommend it.

Need a bit more of a hook? Here’s the trailer:

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