A Monster Calls (2016) Review

 "There is not always a good guy.  Nor is there always a bad one.  Most people are somewhere in between."
-The Monster



As 13-year-old Connor O'Malley (Lewis MacDougall) faces the imminent death of his ailing mother and his entire life crumbles around him, Connor is visited by a Monster (Liam Neeson) who has some stories to tell him.


What Works:

I've got to tell you, I was not prepared for this movie.  I really didn't know a ton about it, just that a monster helps a young boy get through some stuff, but beyond that, I didn't know anything.  This movie is an emotional freight train that hits you at full speed.  The writing and performances come together incredibly well to emotionally devastate anyone who watches.  

I have to give major props to all of the actors, but Lewis MacDougall is the standout.  I'm rarely impressed by child actors, but this guy goes above and beyond any expectations I had.  He makes you feel for Connor and with all the crap he has to go through, you're definitely going to be able to relate to him on some level.  

During the final tale, this movie gets dialed up to 11 and it's heartbreaking.  We finally get to learn the secret that Connor had been hiding from the entire film and it's intense.  The Monster brings Connor's nightmare to life and throws us in the middle of it.  It's an emotional hurricane and it hits hard with some extremely effective filmmaking.

Finally, two of the Monster's tales are told in animated form and look similar to the one from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1.  These animations are gorgeous.  I could watch a whole movie told that way.  They are a work of art and a highlight of the movie.


What Sucks:

My only problem with the movie comes from the second tale, which didn't quite come together for me.  The moral of the story is belief is half of all healing and the man who offered to sell out his beliefs to save his children gets horribly punished.  This doesn't really jive with the rest of the movie, so I'm not really sure why this story is told the way it is.


Verdict:

A Monster Calls is an emotionally brutal film with excellent performances, especially from Lewis MacDougall, an amazing 3rd act, and beautiful animations.  One of the tales didn't work for me, but the rest of the movie did and it has certainly got it going on.

 9/10: Great 

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