How well would a bunch of quinoa-eating, anti-gun liberal progressive Instagramers fare if faced with protecting themselves from an alien invasion?
That's the question this movie asks, and watching the answer play out is humorous, but I couldn't help but think how much better a movie could have been made from such a good premise. For a liberal progressive like myself, it's easy to put myself in the shoes of the protagonists, a hipster couple from New York who decide to take a break from social media at the worst possible time, and there are some chuckles to be had at making fun of them and by extension myself. The film is at its best in the first half, as this oblivious couple gradually catches on that something is amiss. But it unravels the longer it goes on, and the ending falls apart, as if the filmmakers painted themselves into a corner they didn't know how to get out of.
In a year as terrible as 2020, the film's message, which can essentially be boiled down to valuing those closest to you and forget the rest, is welcome. I just wish it had come in a better package.
Grade: B-
That's the question this movie asks, and watching the answer play out is humorous, but I couldn't help but think how much better a movie could have been made from such a good premise. For a liberal progressive like myself, it's easy to put myself in the shoes of the protagonists, a hipster couple from New York who decide to take a break from social media at the worst possible time, and there are some chuckles to be had at making fun of them and by extension myself. The film is at its best in the first half, as this oblivious couple gradually catches on that something is amiss. But it unravels the longer it goes on, and the ending falls apart, as if the filmmakers painted themselves into a corner they didn't know how to get out of.
In a year as terrible as 2020, the film's message, which can essentially be boiled down to valuing those closest to you and forget the rest, is welcome. I just wish it had come in a better package.
Grade: B-