A Monster Calls - movie review
A Monster Calls
Plot: A boy seeks the help of a tree monster to cope with his single mum's terminal illness.
Cast: Lewis MacDougall, Sigourney Weaver, Felicity Jones
Director: J. A. Bayona
Rating: 12A (moderate threat, scenes of emotional distress)
Runtime: 1hr 48 mins
Release Date: Sunday 1st January 2017
From denouncing God in Japan, Liam Neeson has now morphed into a walking talking tree all within a week. We can never say he's anything but versatile. A Monster Calls is the next feature film from J. A. Bayona, the visionary director behind The Orphanage and The Impossible, both of which I've never seen. The story follows Connor, a young boy who is struggling to cope whilst his mother suffers from a critical illness. In a moment of need, Connor encounters The Monster who explains to Connor that he will regale him with three stories and then Connor will have to tell the fourth which will be 'His Truth'. All in all, this film blew me away and I'm not ashamed to say that I wept like a baby.
One of the most alluring aspects about A Monster Calls are the awards worthy performances. From every single cast member, there isn't a dull or badly delivered line to be found. At the heart and centre of the film is the startling revelation known as Lewis MacDougall. I'm shocked that he isn't getting more awards talk about his performance because he isn't just the best child actor of the year, MacDougall shows himself to be one of the best actors of the year. The raw passion and emotion he emotes is jaw-dropping for a child of that age especially when you see many other Hollywood A-listers that struggle to smile or cry on cue. Because we follow him on this emotional journey, when the third act comes, and it comes in full force, MacDougall has a scene that stunned me with his talent on show. He is nothing short of perfect and I only hope that his career launches from here because he's got the skill to go very far. Watch out. We could be witnessing the rise of a star. Bayona did it with Tom Holland in The Impossible and now he's Spider-Man. Who knows? Maybe MacDougall could become Bond one day. Connor isn't the only character affected by his mother's illness as Sigourney Weaver plays the Grandmother who gives a fantastically heart wrenching performance of a mother who is watching her own daughter die in front of her and there's nothing she can do. With an almost impeccable English accent, Weaver is sensational by managing to balance the strict nature that Connor dislikes but also depicting her humanity so we can still relate to her. She may be stuck in the past but that doesn't stop our hearts crumbling for her as she wades through her pain and anguish.
Following on from her galactic adventures in a galaxy far far away, Felicity Jones lands back on Earth with a role that will bring anyone who sees it to tears (as long as you possess a functioning heart). Playing someone with this illness is a tough job because you need to be respectful and Jones performs her character of the Mother with such grace and poignancy. Her depiction of the gradual effects that cancer has is heartbreaking but where she truly shines is her motherly love for Connor. Both her and Connor share many scenes that brought me close to tears but near the end of the movie, their interactions emotionally destroyed me. I went with my mum and when I say we cried, I don't mean the one singular tear. We ugly cried. The screen wasn't busy and we left the film looking like we've cut onions in a chlorine filled pool. Toby Kebbell also appears in a small role as the elusive Father figure in Connor's life. Firstly, it's good to see Kebbell in a role that either isn't created through motion capture or featured in a poor movie. To see him really go for it was a treat because when Kebbell shows up to act, he has the tendency to knock your socks off. My socks were officially knocked off. As for Liam Neeson, what can I say? He's brilliant as the voice for the Monster who visits Connor. Imagine Groot meets The BFG and that's what you'll get with this monster. Neeson's commanding voice is present but you completely forget it's him through the fascination that the story provides.
FACT: The screenplay for this film was featured in the 2013 Blacklist; a list of the "most liked" unmade scripts of the year.
I may have mentioned it once or twice but my advice to you is bring many boxes of Kleenex. Yes. Boxes. You'll need them. What really resonated with me was that A Monster Calls isn't strictly going for the effect of making you cry but tells you a story that is overwhelming and undeniably saddening. If you cry, it's a sign that you were invested. With that being the case, consider me totally and unequivocally invested. In a slight downside, A Monster Calls isn't reinventing the story of families encountering terminal illnesses and there are quite a few typical tropes that appear but when they're done so well, it isn't negatively noticeable. Watching Connor live his day to day life was perhaps the most emotional aspect of the film. This boy is so young but because of his situation, he's had to grow up fast. That means we see him making dinner, putting the washing on and other chores that we'd usually find parents doing. Sadly, this makes him exhausted and a social outcast at school leading to bullies attacking him. Just when you think his life couldn't get any worse with his mother's condition, the portrayal of the bullies is achingly accurate and despicable. It's rare I wish harm on another human being but I was praying for karma to be an absolute bitch to him. The whole look of the film is even dark and depressing (at least when in the real world). The houses are painted with drab colours, floored with grubby carpets and moody lighting creating a sense of foreboding. You know it's not going to be happy story when the lights have cobwebs surrounding them. Caspar is the one exception. However, the surprise and delight that A Monster Calls supplies are the interactions between The Monster and Connor when the tales are being told. Bayona incorporates a unique style of animation for these individual stories, all of which are beautiful and could have lasted for the whole movie. They are reminiscent of Aesop's fables in the way that they are entertaining at face value but all contain an important life lesson within. For Connor, the three stories all link to his current situation whether it be clinging on to his mother, living with his grandmother or standing up to the bullies at school. It's when Connor tells his truth that the tears start to flow and they don't stop until the credits roll.
A Monster Calls is nothing short of a cinematic triumph. All the performances are of a first class standard so much so I would personally nominate all three of the leads for their respective categories. Bayona earns the title of visionary director with a stunning look at a boy's struggle to face the truth and beautifully sprinkles in the most imaginative of fairy tale sequences that all culminates in a finale that is certain to fill up your tear ducts. I honestly cannot remember crying in a film like this in a long time.
My Verdict: 9.5/10
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