The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021)

Directed by: Ian Samuels | 98 minutes | comedy, fantasy | Actors: Kathryn Newton, Kyle Allen, Jermaine Harris, Anna Mikami, Josh Hamilton, Cleo Fraser, Al Madrigal, Jorja Fox, Teance Blackburn, Mia Lovell, Yoriko Haraguchi, Vanessa Padla, Bria Brimmer

Sometimes you can spoiler, sometimes you can’t. It is no problem at all with the American genre combination ‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things’. The film is yet another variation on the classic ‘Groundhog Day’, in which a character relives the same day over and over again. In ‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things’ it is even two characters who keep reliving the same day. And since this is about a 17-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl, we can already check the romantic comedy box.

Mark and Margaret don’t know each other yet when the time loop kicks in. After reliving the same day on their own many, many, many times, they meet at the edge of a swimming pool. Mark did little in those days, except made some drawings, helped people and he went in search of the beauty of the everyday. Margaret has also done the latter, but she has also taught herself to drive a car, with disappointing (and risky) results. Margaret also has to leave on time every day, the why of this we will only learn later.

All this could have resulted in a youthful rombow in a Groundhog Day-esque setting. But ‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things’ is more than that. Our two heroes are not at all concerned with escaping the time loop at first. Their quest to map everyday beauty (see title) is slightly reminiscent of ‘American Beauty’. We see an amateur pianist immersed in his own playing, a crossing turtle before traffic stops, a skater girl with a formidable jump. All equally beautiful.

The dialogues are slightly more intelligent and stimulating than in comparable films. When love strikes, things go a little differently than you might expect. ‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things’ is therefore just as much romkom as it is coming of age, with a small philosophical layer and a considerable layer of mystery. But above all, this is a warm and moving film, with a pleasantly optimistic character.

‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things’ also scores high in the other categories. Kyle Allen plays great as Mark, but Kathryn Newton steals the show as Margaret, a bubbly type that every 17-year-old (m/f) has to fall in love with. Add to that some atmospheric music, some dry jokes and some beautiful images, and you know you’ve got a winner. Not masterly cinema, but a tiny perfect thing.