It’s been over a week since I saw “A Monster Calls” so this review might be a little brief. However I didn’t want it to pass by completely without a mention. For a start, us going to see A Monster Calls was also a “date” for Megan as we picked up her boyfriend Daniel and took him with us to the cinema. They sat together as a couple and Lily and I sat together separately.
As I mentioned in my “Movies to look out for in 2017“, I didn’t know a whole lot about A Monster Calls. Megan had read it at school in English, which is how it ended up on my radar and then I realised it was being released as a movie very soon. I also saw a trailer that explained how Patrick Ness had actually taken the idea of another lady (Siobhan Dowd) after she died, having decided it was too good to just let slip away, and make it into a novel himself – obviously giving credit to her. With that in mind, I was keen to see the movie and although I thought it might be sad, I was still looking forward to it.
This movie did not disappoint one bit. In fact, it was possibly the best movie I have seen ever – or at least certainly in a very long time, excluding Disney which I love regardless. The basic storyline (with no spoilers) is about a boy called Connor, whose mum has cancer and is progressively getting worse. The “monster” is a nearby tree that comes to life (perhaps really, perhaps in a dream, perhaps just in his imagination) and helps Connor come to terms with what is happening in his life, specifically with his mum. The story is truly heartbreaking and if you can make it through without crying, I’m not sure if you are just cold hearted or deserving of my respect. I sobbed fairly constantly from the middle onwards and by the end I had even given myself a headache. I liked that the movie was British, I absolutely loved Liam Neeson and overall it was just a fantastic movie. Despite being somewhat predictable, it didn’t take away from the story at all and I can see why its a book that would be studied at school. There are many different layers to the story, lessons to be learned and symbolism to be analysed. I probably won’t ever read the book now I’ve seen the movie but I’m convinced it would be fantastic and would recommend it to anyone.
