A movie with a title like this, is either going to be a lot of fun … or a stinker.
Happily, the former is true.
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| Joel (Dylan O'Brien) finds that his new canine companion is quite useful in what has become an extremely dangerous world. |
I know we’ve been deluged by “giant monster” movies of late — Godzilla, King Kong, Pacific Rim and so forth — but this one’s different. In addition to the terrific effects, the secondary attraction is Brian Duffield and Matthew Robinson’s cheeky script, which goes a long way toward turning star Dylan O’Brien into a most unlikely action hero.
On top of which, local viewers will get a kick out of the fact that some of these events are set in Fairfield, of all places. (Filming actually took place in Australia.)
At some point into the future, a massive asteroid threatens to wreak havoc when it hits Earth. Governments cooperatively scramble to successfully destroy it, but the process blankets our planet with a chemical residue that causes cold-blooded animals — bugs, amphibians, sea creatures — to mutate into huge monsters that soon kill off (um, devour) most of humanity.
The United States’ few survivors have holed up in underground bunker “colonies” spread throughout the country, which maintain contact with each other via short wave radio. Joel (O’Brien), belonging to one such colony, is something of a misfit. Everybody is kind — they love his minestrone (!) — but he feels useless.
He isn’t strong or brave enough to join his older comrades when they go topside to forage for supplies, a dangerous endeavor that often has tragic consequences.
Worse yet, he’s the colony’s only singleton; everybody else has paired off. He nurses the memory of his former girlfriend, Aimee (Jessica Henwick), whom he hasn’t seen since they were separated seven years earlier, during the evacuation of Fairfield. He knows where she is — another colony, 85 miles away, on the California coast — but that doesn’t help much.
When his colony is breached by a giant ant, with disastrous consequences, Joel decides he’d rather die trying to reunite with Aimee, than spend whatever remains of his life cowering in a hole. And so he grabs a crossbow and a backpack’s worth of supplies, and heads topside. Nobody tries to stop him; they all understand.
Needless to say, his quest proves quite hazardous.
Matthews and editors Debbie Berman and Nancy Richardson maintain an impressive level of tension, thanks to the contrast between cinematographer Lachlan Milne’s gorgeous tableaus — the world has become a lush, verdant paradise, absent mankind’s presence — and the hideous dangers that lurk within forests or beneath grass-laden fields.
The fun comes from Joel’s constant, stream-of-consciousness conversations with himself, often laden with cynical self-pity and mocking non-sequiturs. O’Brien is hilarious; we can’t imagine that he’ll survive 15 minutes in this hostile environment. He’s foolish, reckless and hopelessly untrained, and — sure enough — gets into trouble almost immediately.
Enter this film’s coolest co-star: a stray dog Joel unimaginatively dubs Boy (played with impressive canine acting chops by identical Australian kelpies named Hero and Dodge). Duffield and Robinson clearly know dogs; their most touching detail is Boy’s resolute attachment to a brightly colored scrap of cloth that apparently belonged to his previous owner. (Joel, sensitive to such things, puts it in his backpack.)
Joel and Boy further luck into a chance encounter with Clyde (Michael Rooker) and young Minnow (Ariana Greenblatt), two resourceful survivors slowly making their way to higher mountain ground, which monsters tend to avoid, due to colder temperatures. Greenblatt’s Minnow is a hoot, as the little girl — astonished by Joel’s incompetence — (im)patiently teaches him basic survival skills (amid frequent eye rolls).
Clyde’s help is quieter and more sympathetic. Rooker radiates the wisdom of hard experience.
Minnow’s most important lesson: Unlikely as it seems, not all monsters are hostile. “You can always tell in their eyes,” she gravely explains.
Really, you can’t help adoring all these characters. It’s particularly rewarding to watch O’Brien gradually shape Joel into a better version of himself.
I’m reluctant to reveal anything else, including details of the various monsters. Much of the fun comes from the sudden shift from self-deprecating humor to creature jump-scares, and the imaginative way Cox and his effects team have transformed common (harmless) critters into something far more weird and dangerous.
Think of this as a ride through an impressively creative carnival haunted house.
The story’s third act moves in an unexpected — but completely reasonable — direction, building to a terrific and exciting climax. Duffield and Robinson then supply a thoroughly satisfying epilogue (a rare thing these days, and quite welcome here).
I love nice surprises, and this film definitely qualifies.
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