The 2025 Nashville Film Festival has returned for its 56th year. Over the last five-plus years I have been covering the festival and am excited to talk about the slate of films. On today’s menu is a documentary about Paul McCartney called Man on the Run and a comedy from Jay Duplass called The Baltimorons.

Man on the Run

Paul forms new band Wings after Beatles breakup. Archival home footage shows Paul’s life with Linda, who influenced his music. Film follows Wings from formation through 1970s during which Paul wrote hit songs.

The film begins by unpacking the split of the Beatles, which was fascinating to see how it all came to be. Of course, this is a story we have heard and seen played out in so many ways, but hearing the emotional toll that it took on Paul throughout the whole process was interesting to hear unfold. This later followed the unpacking of the lawsuit that painted him in a bad light. It followed with the story about the rest of his career unfolding the way that it did, including picking up the pen again even after those trying times. 

Morgan Neville brought Mr. Rogers story to life with Won’t You Be My Neighbor? which won him the Academy Award. So it isn’t shocking that McCartney would bring on his talents to tell his story. Neville decided to let older pictures, videos, and newspaper clippings tell the story with the voice-over by others in the background. This is where Neville lost me. How it was shot was like this found footage type of movie that made you feel almost nauseated to watch. 

Overall, I liked the context of what Neville and McCartney brought to the table with the story of the downfall and the aftermath that led to his resurgence. The storytelling, narrating, and use of music are perfection. However, the way it was shot was so uninviting, you might be better off listening to it and not watching it. Beatles fans and McCartney fans, I am sure, will love checking this out when it releases. 

The Baltimorons

A newly sober man’s Christmas Eve dental emergency leads to an unexpected romance with his older dentist as they explore Baltimore together.

Cliff and Brittany are on their way to meet with her extended family for a holiday get-together. Upon arriving, he bangs his mouth on the doorway, leading him to get dental work done. After getting the work done by Didi, a recently divorced grandmother, he realizes his car had been towed. 

From here, it leads to her taking him to the tow yard to pick up his car. This leads to a hilarious dynamic between Cliff and Didi, which is easily the best part of the movie. Michael Strasser and Liz Larsen share this hilarious, off-the-wall chemistry that was full of life. The comedic timing within the writing by Duplass and how these two bring it together within the film makes for quite a few laughs. 

One of the highlights of the film was Duplass’ ability to bring Baltimore to life in the way that he did, making it, its own character. Jonathan Bregel’s cinematography work helped Duplass capture that rawness of the city even within this comedic world. Overall, the script isn’t perfect, and when it takes away from Cliff and Didi, it loses its muster. I still enjoyed The Baltimorons quite a bit and give it a recommendation.