NEW YORK (OSV News) — Oh, those creepy Christians! Such is the underlying sentiment discernible through most of the running time of the psychological horror film “The Front Room” (A24).

A late plot development — not to be detailed for fear of a spoiler — completely derails this already problematic chillfest, however, as the script moves from implicitly disdaining an off-kilter version of scriptural faith to justifying a grave crime. In light of that climactic stance, the movie is unsuitable for all.

Pseudo-sophisticated anthropology professor Belinda (Brandy Norwood) peddles a feminist version of Dan Brown-style hooey about comparative religion in the college classroom while coping with emotional trauma behind the scenes. As we eventually learn, pregnant Belinda and her husband, public defender Norman (Andrew Burnap), had a son who died in infancy.

Already-beleaguered Belinda finds her woes multiplied once Norman’s recently widowed stepmother, Solange (Kathryn Hunter), moves in with the couple, occupying the chamber of the title — which was originally intended to be the family nursery. Solange is a devious religious fanatic who believes she is being guided by the Holy Spirit.

As this mother-in-law from hell increasingly blights Belinda’s life, viewers are invited both to revel in Solange’s malicious antics and to sympathize with her victim. Among other things, Solange capitalizes on her supposed incontinence to create disgusting situations for Norman and Belinda — and nasty visuals for the audience.

Repeatedly wallowing in her own filth, Solange declares, in her Southern drawl, “I’m a m-e-s-s, mess.” As adapted from Susan Hill’s short story by screenwriters and debuting directors Max and Sam Eggers, the same can be said for “The Front Room” itself.

The film contains skewed values, shadowy marital lovemaking, gross scatological images, about a half-dozen instances each of profanity and milder swearing, much rough language and occasional crude talk. The OSV News classification is O — morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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A Kevin Smith film is a warm embrace to me from an old friend. While there are those who have long dismissed the auteur as unserious, I consistently find his work to be compelling, emotional, and a genuine reflection of his creative spirit. More than that, Smith has a tendency that flies under the radar to defy expectations. Who would have guessed that Clerks III would tell the story it ultimately told? So, while a teen romantic comedy would seem like an opportunity for Smith to be as crude as ever, The 4:30 Movie is actually one of his sweetest flicks ever. I’m an easy mark for him, but regardless of that, I smiled and had a great time for about 90 minutes.

The 4:30 Movie is a love letter to the multiplex. It’s also a tribute to young love and summer romance. Smith doesn’t completely avoid going blue or working in raunch, but in many ways, it’s as pure and experience as we’ve seen from him since Jersey Girl. Even a raunchy effort like Zack and Miri Make a Porno was still covering up a huge mushy heart from the filmmaker, so here, he’s just letting it beat even more out in the open. He loves love, to be sure, but he also loves movie theaters.

Taking place in the summer of 1986, Brian David (Austin Zajur) has two plans for the day. One is to spend the Saturday afternoon like he always does, with best friends Belly (Reed Northrup) and Burny (Nicholas Cirillo) sneaking into multiple movies at their local theater. The other is to ask Melody Barnegat (Siena Agudong) on a date. One flirty yet awkward phone call later and she’s going to join him for a movie later on that day. There’s the slight hiccup of it being an R-rated film, but they’ll figure that out later. The important thing is Melody is coming and Brian is on cloud nine. Then, it’s time to join Belly and Burny for some theater-hopping.

When the self-important theater manager (Ken Jeong) bans one of the gang during their movie marathon, Brian’s plans are thrown for a loop. Whether it’s Melody’s overprotective mother (Kate Micucci), Brian’s own mom (Rachel Dratch) who calls the theater to talk to him, or any number of other occurrences, the world seems to be conspiring against Brian. He still believes in the possibility of summer love, which Burny takes issue with. In true teenage fashion, it all comes to a head before wrapping up in a surprisingly sweet manner. I was charmed throughout.

This cast is a mix of young up and comers in the bigger roles and celebrity cameos popping up throughout. Austin Zajur is the star and the Smith stand-in, doing a good job of suggesting the artist as a younger man. His chemistry with the odd Reed Northrup and too cool for school Nicholas Cirillo feels like that of real childhood friends. Zajur’s interactions with Siena Agudong are also a highlight, as they play off of each other very well. Agudong has an ethereal quality to her that’s well captured. Ken Jeong is having a lot of fun as an old-fashioned teen movie villain, while Rachel Dratch and Kate Micucci effectively play very different types of embarrassing parents. The aforementioned cameos include Logic, Method Man, Betty Aberlin, Jeff Anderson, Diedrich Bader, Jason Biggs, Rosario Dawson, Ralph Garman, Jason Lee, Justin Long, Jason Mewes, Adam Pally, Sam Richardson, Genesis Rodriguez, Harley Quinn Smith, and more.

Filmmaker Kevin Smith really mines his teenage years for material here, with the result being quite enjoyable. Fans will recall several of his stories from childhood popping up either as anecdotes or actually plot moments. It’s a nice quality that the script doesn’t require you to know them for these sequences to work. It’s just specificity that adds to the flavor of the broth. As for his direction, it remains simple, though shooting in the multiplex he used to frequent and now owns serves as inspiration, as well as smart budgeting. He’s also delighting in crafting both fake trailers and a fake movie that our heroes are watching. Those bits of creativity make The 4:30 Movie stand out even more so than it already does. At the same time, he never loses sight of the love story at its core. Sure, there are jokes about where film culture would be headed, but mostly, this is about a teen boy who wants to kiss a teen girl again.

The 4:30 Movie is a joyful burst of nostalgia and one of Smith’s sweetest efforts to date. Fans of the multi-hyphenate will get a kick out of this lark, without question. It’s such a lovely change of pace for him, while still showcasing all of his strengths. I had such a good time with it and I suspect that you will too. As Smith continues to explore his craft in new ways, I’m 100% here for it!

SCORE: ★★★1/2

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Taylor Swift said Tuesday night that she plans to vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in November, adding that she wanted to clear the air after former President Trump suggested that she might support the Republican ticket.

In an Instagram post minutes after the debate between Harris and Trump ended, Swift said she was voting for Harris because “she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them.”

“We can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos,” Swift wrote. She said she was “so heartened and impressed” that Harris chose Walz as her running mate, “who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”

Swift’s post comes several weeks after Trump shared images, created using artificial intelligence, that suggested that Swift had endorsed him and that her fans could help him win in November.

One image posted to Trump’s social media network, Truth Social, showed a group of young women wearing “Swifties for Trump” shirts. Another showed Swift dressed up as Uncle Sam, with the headline: “Taylor wants you to vote for Donald Trump.”

The images were shared by a social media influencer and re-shared by Trump, who added: “I accept.”

“It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation,” Swift wrote of the images. “It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.”

Swift, 34, wrote in her message that “your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make.”

“If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most,” Swift wrote. “As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country.”

Swift posted her message alongside a photo from her Time magazine “Person of the Year” shoot, holding her youngest cat, Benjamin Button, against her shoulder. She signed her post: “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady.”

Her sign-off was a not-so-subtle nod to Republican vice presidential candidate and Ohio Sen. JD Vance, who once derided Harris and other Democratic leaders as “childless cat ladies.”

“We are effectively run in this country via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too,” Vance told Fox News’ then-host Tucker Carlson in 2021. “It’s just a basic fact — you look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC — the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children.”

Walz learned about the endorsement while on the air with MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. He beamed and pressed his hand to his heart as Maddow read the post aloud.

“I am incredibly grateful, first of all, to Taylor Swift,” Walz said. “I say that also as a cat owner, a fellow cat owner. That was eloquent, and it was clear, and that’s the type of courage we need in America.”

Swift has deep ties to Pennsylvania, which was mentioned repeatedly during Tuesday’s debate in Philadelphia. She grew up midway between Harrisburg and Philadelphia. Her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, is the brother of Jason Kelce, a former center for the Philadelphia Eagles.