When I first saw the trailer for Sacramento, the new film from actor/writer/director Michael Angarano, I was excited to see something that evoked the indie dramedies I loved so much in the mid-aughts—films like Juno, Little Miss Sunshine, and others that once dominated art house theaters. But what I got was something even better.
Rather than leaning into pure quirk, Sacramento surprised me with its emotional honesty, mature performances, genuine hilarity, deeply felt tears, and a refreshing lack of pretense. While it borrows the structure of a buddy comedy, it’s filled with neurotic, sharp dialogue, introspection, and real adult vulnerability—the kind of small, resonant moments that stick with you.
The story centers on Rickey, a spontaneous and emotionally raw man still grappling with the recent death of his father. He convinces his old friend Glenn (played by Michael Cera), now a seemingly stable, soon-to-be father, to join him on a sudden trip from Los Angeles to Sacramento. Glenn’s pregnant wife (Kristen Stewart) surprisingly encourages him to go, and the journey pushes both men to confront their pasts and the uncertain futures ahead of them.
At its core, Sacramento is a film about aging and the way the anxieties of youth don’t simply vanish with time. The friendship at the center of the film is between two men who, on the surface, appear to be in vastly different life stages. But as the road trip unfolds, it becomes clear their fears, insecurities, and emotional struggles are strikingly similar. There’s a reason they’re friends—and Glenn’s instinct to push Rickey away feels rooted in the fact that he sees his own flaws reflected back at him. Rickey wears his chaos on his sleeve; Glenn buries his deeper.
Michael Cera is absolutely at his best here. He delivers plenty of laugh-out-loud moments that harken back to his earlier comedic work, but there’s a new level of confidence and emotional complexity in his performance. He’s never been funnier—or more human.
Michael Angarano, meanwhile, is perfect as Rickey. On the surface, Rickey is a total mess, but Angarano lets us see the depth and decency beneath the bad decisions. As a director and writer, he delivers a film that feels both deeply personal and impressively assured.
Kristen Stewart and Maya Erskine, though in smaller roles, bring a lived-in realism to their performances as two women—one a new mother, the other about to be—who are both quietly exhausted by the emotional labor they’re asked to carry.
And I really need to emphasize: this movie is funny. I genuinely don’t think I’ve laughed this hard in a theater in years. It felt good to laugh like that.
I loved Sacramento. It’s sharp, heartfelt, and deeply funny—a perfect film for a spring evening at the movies.
