Movie Poster for “Jay Kelly” (Image Courtesy of Cinecuitat)
This piece is from the CU Independent’s opinion section. Any opinions or views do not represent the CU Independent.
Watching “Jay Kelly” at the 2025 Denver Film Festival felt like seeing Hollywood turn the camera on itself. Not in a glamorous and red-carpet kind of way, but in a deeply human one. “Jay Kelly,” directed by Noah Baumbach and starring George Clooney as Jay Kelly and Adam Sandler as Ron Sukenick, tells the story of an aging movie star beginning to question what’s left when fame starts to fade. It is slow, subtle, and incredibly self-aware — and that’s exactly why I liked it.
Jay Kelly, the protagonist, is a celebrity who has everything anyone could ever want, such as wealth, attention and admiration from his fans. Even though Kelly seemingly has all of these amazing things, he can’t seem to find peace in the present or the past. What struck me most was how real Clooney’s performance felt. The film almost feels autobiographical, as if he’s looking back at his own career and how the world sees him. Not only does the film reflect the downsides of success within the acting industry but also allows for self-reflection across generations. This film allows older generations to look back on decisions they made career and family wise to see if they regret or are happy with their decisions. The film can also be very thought-provoking for younger generations to see what can happen when success starts to take over and previous values fade.
Adam Sandler’s character Ron, plays Kelly’s loyal-to-a-fault manager. Sandler trades his usual loud humor for quiet loyalty and heartbreak, grounding the story in a friendship that feels lived-in and raw. Both Clooney’s and Sandler’s depictions of these two characters felt so raw and emotional, making you truly believe these actors are these people in real life.
What made “Jay Kelly” stand out to me, was its honesty about fame. It wasn’t about the stereotypical glamour, under-the-spotlight, and red-carpet life, but it was about the emotional cost behind it. The film definitely doesn’t glorify celebrity life; it dissects it. Many people don’t think about this aspect of fame, which is why the film was so compelling. There is a lingering loneliness throughout, with them even making constant jokes about it between Kelly and his daughter Daisy Kelly (Grace Edwards). Even though Kelly seemed to have a lot of “friends,” they all tended to be superficial relationships, as many of his friends were people who worked for him.
The film also dipicts how success can feel hollow once the applause fades. I found myself thinking about how often we idolize celebrities and realizing how isolating that lifestyle can be. This film was a massive wake-up call for what success and status can sometimes be like if you lose sight of what you value and the previous relationships you had. “Jay Kelly” captures this disconnect beautifully, as the idea that fame can give you everything you want yet take away parts of you that feel most authentic.
Visually, the film is also stunning. Shot on a 35mm camera, it has a nostalgic feel that makes every frame feel like a distant memory. The flashbacks to Kelly’s younger years are also impeccably done, as the audience is able to see how Kelly felt when he would relive moments from his younger years, as they gave him new insights into things he might not have even thought about. The European backdrops, fading hotel rooms, empty streets, and dark, foggy wooded areas perfectly reflect Jay’s internal emptiness. You can almost feel him drifting further and further away from the world that once adored him for his acting as the film progresses.
With all that being said, I can also understand why some critics thought the film slow or self-indulgent. The film lingers on specific moments and drags them out, and there are some moments that feel like they go on a little long, especially in the beginning when we first learn about Jay Kelly. But for me, that is the entire point of the film. It’s not supposed to be action-packed every single scene; instead, it’s about the film’s stillness and watching a man come to terms with the fact that his best moments might be behind him. The quietness of the film was very important to the plot.
“Jay Kelly” made me think about how fame is both alluring and destructive. It gives you an identity where many people know your name; however, it can be easily taken away when the world moves on. Nothing is forever, and it’s important to keep the people that matter to you close and never lose sight of them. This film really proved that, as Kelly’s family members distanced themselves from him due to his success, and when he finally had time for them, they had moved on from him. Clooney and Baumbach definitely don’t sugarcoat the truth; they let Jay’s actions sit with you to allow for reflection. By the time the credits rolled, I wasn’t thinking about how successful and famous “Jay Kelly” was; I was thinking about how human he was and that even though you can have everything, you can still have nothing.
While “Jay Kelly” may not be for everyone, I think it’s one of those films that stays with you and makes you reflect long after you have left the theater. It makes you think about your own future or even the past and wonder how your life is going or went. The film is bittersweet, imperfect and quietly devastating in the best way. I would rate this movie a 5/5 not because it’s flashy or groundbreaking, but because it dares to be intimate, personal and painfully real — and sometimes that’s what Hollywood needs in an often fake environment.
“Jay Kelly” is scheduled to be released in select theaters on Nov. 14, 2025, before releasing on Netflix on Dec. 5, 2025.
Contact CU Independent Writer Emily Eigenbrode at emily.eigenbrode@colorado.edu
