Review of A Monster Calls (2016) by Brandon W — 19 Jun 2017

A Monster Calls is directed by J. A. Bayona, and it stars Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, Sigourney Weaver, Toby Kebbell, and Liam Neeson in a dark fantasy film about a kid that has to deal with his mother having some sort of cancer, and all of a sudden he imagines a tree monster that tells him three tales, in which in the end, the kid has to tell the last tale.

I've heard about this a while and wanted to see it when the movie gave us in my opinion, probably one of the most beautiful trailers in years because it has a sweet enough song that keeps us in a sad but interested mood, and it just felt flowing enough that goes with the watercolor transitions.

This is one of those films that when I finished it, I thought it was a special kind of movie to me. Lewis MacDougall is great as a kid main lead when he has to act emotional, irritated in a not so annoying way, and caring for his mother.

Felicity Jones is a lot better here than in Rogue One where she didn't act one-note here as she goes through a transition of her being sick, and you feel convinced that she is really sick and dying.

I heard some people are a bit off with Sigourney's accent in this, but I didn't know what they were talking about as I thought she was good in what she had to bring as a very serious grandma that's a bit strict, but can be emotional when caring for her daughter.

Toby Kebbell isn't in it that much, but he's also likable in that he cares about his son, but he wanted him to know the realities of his mom's situation, and you don't get angry at this character because you understand why from his thought.

Liam Neeson is probably one of the best parts of the film as he brings a sense of intimidation that you make him mad, he'll squish you up until you pop, and it feels genuine with him being a bigger and menacing version of Groot.

The special effects look amazing, especially the watercolor effects when the tales are being told as it worked so well into it that those effects can be breathtaking. I really do like how it deals with the grief, knowing the fact that your mom is dying, and you want her to keep living, and it does the themes in a very adult and imaginative way that kind of reminds me of Where the Wild Things Are, which is another film that I love, in terms of the imagination coming to reality when having to deal with a situation that's very personal.

The writing by Patrick Ness, who also wrote the source material, is well-written, the director. By J. A. Bayona is top-notch that can be quite intense in some parts, especially when you care about the characters and know the fact of where they have to deal with.

Maybe the smallest, and only, issue that I can think of is that the bullies are a bit under-developed, but they're not in it that much as the focus is on the kid, they do get some interesting interplay in the end, and it's a satisfying end to them.

A Monster Calls is a magnificent film that I'm sad for the fact that this movie didn't get a lot of money that it deserves in my opinion.