Love and Monsters - Too much fun to miss

 

Rent it on Amazon, Google Play, Apple TV, and YouTube. 

Of all the ingredients necessary to make a movie, let alone a good one, there is one element that has the power to surpass all of them, and make a decent movie great: charm. A film can have less-than-stellar effects, occasionally sloppy writing, and a few actors who shouldn’t give up their day job. As long as there is a sense of effort and an air of enthusiasm. Todays subject, Love and Monsters, does not have any of the aforementioned negative qualities, and is loaded with tons of charm to boot. This is a must-watch for 2020. 

Set in a post-apocalyptic world where the Earth has been overrun by giant monsters wiping out 90% of the population, humanity has resorted to hiding in underground bunkers and colonies. One survivor is a young man named Joel (Dylan O’Brien), who has been living his life in slow motion for the past seven years. His two forms of solace are chronicling the various creatures they encounter, and occasionally talking to his girlfriend in another colony eighty miles away. One day, Joel decides that he’s done waiting, and is going to brave the surface world to reach his love. Despite not having proficient survival skills and a tendency to freeze-in-place when confronted with danger. Against the odds, Joel embarks on his quest, making some friends along the way, including a kick-ass dog named Boy (more on him in a minute), and maintaining a healthy dose of optimism. 

This movie is an absolute blast! The characters are likable in textured, the writing is witty and clever, the direction is on-point, and the overall message about survival and adapting to change is well delivered. 

The special-effects are what ultimately sell the story. While the majority of it was likely CGI, it was so seamless and well layered into the environment, they succeeded in making you believe the creatures were real. Not to mention the designs of the monsters, while probably not entirely unique, succeed in feeling alien yet familiar. They does more than just increase the size of an established Earthly creature; they have personality. 

The MVP award must go to the films best character, Boy; the dog. 

Not only is this dog incredibly adorable, he’s the most bad-ass character in the whole film. My only real nitpick is one little aspect the writers appear to have overlooked. Without spoiling too many details, Boy seems to have a subplot pertaining to an item he refuses to give up. It’s heavily implied that it has to do with his previous owner, and the story suggests that it’s building up to an arc for him. Sadly, it doesn’t go anywhere. Although it’s not a deal-breaker, I would have liked to have seen where it might have gone. 

I will spoil one aspect about Boy that I know some of you are wondering. He does not, I repeat, does NOT die.  

Love and Monsters is the kind of fun film that can only arise from optimism and joy. It is overflowing with tons of entertainment value that is too good to ignore. This movie is well worth the price of admission. Check it out. 

Ladies & gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.