*A few little ones…

IMDB Synopsis

Seven years after the Monsterpocalypse, Joel Dawson, along with the rest of humanity, has been living underground ever since giant creatures took control of the land. After reconnecting over the radio with his high school girlfriend, Aimee, who is now 80 miles away at a coastal colony, Joel begins to fall for her again. As Joel realizes that there’s nothing left for him underground, he decides to venture out to Aimee, despite all the dangerous monsters that stand in his way.

“I feel like Tom Cruise”

In the world we live in today surrounded by Covid-19 we can all feel sequestered while a force outside rages against us. That is why I was able to relate to the new movie Love and Monsters, because like Joel (Dylan O’Brien) we all just want to go see our loved ones. And in this new movie the entire goal is about getting people to remember what life is like on the outside.

In a very Zombieland esque way, we learn this world has been hit by a MonsterPocalypse and every survivor lives underground. Joel was separated from his girlfriend Aimee, and seven years later he decides it is time to find her. They connected via radio so he knows they are about 85 miles away, and off he goes into the unknown. He meets a wonderfully brave dog named Boy and of course immediately you get the I Am Legend vibes as well. The two of them journey together and fend off some of the craziest and best looking monsters I have ever seen. From my eyes it looked to be a mix of practical effects and CGI, but all of it felt very real and fit into the world they created.

A world created by up and coming director Michael Matthews who puts on an incredibly impressive display in his second feature film. As I said the effects were great, the structure of the flashbacks incorporated with present day was deft, and the humor landed. There are definitely some plot holes, but I can look past them when a movie is just fun and that is what this is.

Stock Watch

Stock Up – Dylan O’Brien

I have been a DOB stan since the Maze Runner, Internship days and he continues to rise as one of the most exciting young actors. This whole movie he is interacting with a dog, a radio, CGI monsters, and a Robot, and he crushes it each time. I love what he is doing and I hope he gets the Chalamet treatment soon and gets a role with some meat.

Stock Up – Jessica Henwick

We just talked about her in On The Rocks, and now she continues on the Rocketship to stardom here. We do not se her until later in the movie, but the second she is on screen she immediately steals your attention with her charisma and charm. Im excited to see her next year in Godzilla vs. Kong and Matrix 4.

*A couple other tidbits

• His parents death is absolutely heartbreaking.
• The opening animation is so fun and gives you a great feel for the movie.
• The score felt a tad basic to me and I wanted a bit more.

As I said above this story has many real world comparisons to what is going on in our world. We all just want to see our loved ones and enjoy the world again, but the only way we can do that is work together. That is the same message of the movie; teamwork and perseverance will always shine through. I had a great time with this movie and it reminded me movies do not all have to be Citizen Kane, sometimes they can just be a good ole time.

Juice Rating:

*You can find my 2020 Rankings here.

*You can find all of my Movie Ratings here.

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