Film Shot In Fairhope Begins Streaming Friday

MOBILE, Ala. (Feb. 9, 2021) — The release of “The Map of Tiny Perfect Things” could not be more timely. The story of two teens who live the same day over and over again is a fitting film to watch during a global pandemic, in which many people have stayed home every day for the better part of the year, hoping for things to change — for time to move forward, out of this seemingly infinite loop of news and grief, with no semblance of normalcy.

Fairhope, Alabama provides the backdrop for the charming young adult movie, shot in early 2020 in the small town of 17,000 residents with sweeping views of Mobile Bay. Though it will likely draw comparisons with “Palm Springs,” a film with a similar plot released last summer, screenwriter Lev Grossman makes the case that “the time loop” genre remains fruitful.

“I was sure the possibilities of the premise hadn’t been exhausted yet,” he said. “When I was asked to write the story I started to think: If you had a kind of tender teenage romance about a pair of very chatty and self-aware kids who were stuck in a day, how would it play out?”

Sweet and smart, his screenplay based on a short story takes a much-repeated structure and makes it as unique as can be expected, with a style director Ian Samuels calls “naturalistic and emotional.”

Teens Mark and Margaret find themselves waking up repeatedly on the same summer day, living it all over again - and no one around them has a clue. The “rules” of this universe they live in are laid out in a refreshingly fun way. Grossman avoids lengthy (boring) exposition and immediately immerses the audience into the story, which never really wavers in its humor and heart, thanks to dynamic lead actors Kyle Allen and Kathryn Newton.

The characters make it their mission to find the little things about their small town on this single day that make it special - small joys and simple pleasures, like a janitor playing a piano through a window, an eagle swooping up a fish, a dog running away with a smartphone. These small moments they wouldn’t really notice otherwise are the things that make life worth living, the ones we often overlook.

The film draws its own self-aware allusions to “Groundhog Day” and “Edge of Tomorrow,” but it feels more like the woefully underrated 2017 movie “Before I Fall” starring Zoey Deutch, or Domnhall Gleeson’s time-travel lessons in “About Time.” These similar themes of positivity and appreciating the simple pleasures are less cynical than “Palm Springs” or “Groundhog Day” - despite the tired plot, the characters and their perspective make it refreshingly meaningful for an often short-sighted and maudlin young adult genre.

If “Palm Springs” was the zany, frustrated, psychologically deep time-loop movie we needed last summer when the pandemic was relatively “new,” this is the one we need now, almost a year into feeling like every day has been the same cycle of fear, grief and fear of the unknown.

Simple pleasures, paused time and the desperation to move forward will be keenly understood by any viewers who, like Mark and Margaret, are willing to see the good - and pay close enough attention.

“The Map of Tiny Perfect Things” begins streaming on Amazon Prime Video Feb. 12.