Review: Love and Monsters (4K)

Seven years after the Monsterpocalypse, Joel Dawson, along with the rest of humanity, has been living underground ever since giant creatures took control of the land. After reconnecting over the radio with his high school girlfriend, Aimee, who is now 80 miles away at a coastal colony, Joel begins to fall for her again. As Joel realizes that there’s nothing left for him underground, he decides to venture out to Aimee, despite all the dangerous monsters that stand in his way.

Plot: In a monster-infested world, Joel learns his girlfriend is just 85 miles away. To make the dangerous journey, Joel discovers his inner hero to be with the girl of his dreams.

Director: Michael Matthews

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Runtime: 109 min

Rotten Tomatoes Consensus: Led by a charming star turn from Dylan O’Brien, Love and Monsters peers into the apocalypse and finds an action-adventure with surprising emotional depth.

Online Ratings:

  1. Rotten Tomatoes 91% (Audience 89%)
  2. IMDB 7.0
  3. Metacritic 59

“A fun, fresh and creative post-apocalyptic film that looks great in UHD.”

Review:

I wasn’t able to find the right specs for the way that Love and Monsters was shot, but I can confirm that it was finished at a 4k digital intermediate — this means you’ll get a native presentation on this disc. On top of that, as per the norm with most UHD releases, it was also given a HDR color grade for your viewing pleasure in both Dolby Vision & HDR10.

The first part of the film takes place in a bunker, so the focus is immediately on the black levels, shadow detail and dimension — subtle glows and little intricate details in the darkness stand out as they should. All of the aforementioned aspects look great, but it’s around Chapter 3 when we get outside and HDR really comes to life. The HDR is what makes this movie jump over the Blu-ray… have I mentioned before that HDR it’s my favorite thing about UHD? (winky face)

The whole post-apocalyptic environment really shines with different shades of green under the sun. All the little things like dirt, rocks, rubble, bushes, trees and broken down houses don’t shy away from detail. This continues with the people — the flesh tones are warm and natural showcasing up-close and personal characteristics including facial hair, cuts, scrapes, sweat, blood, dirt and grime. (This movie was built was care and you can tell.) In all honesty, there aren’t any flaws on this disc; the colors look great, the detail is sharp and all the little things fit right into place. It’s always nice when the majority of the color spectrum is showcased in UHD, it makes for great visuals.

The CGI is near flawless — that was the only thing with this film that I though could be a problem in UHD (it wasn’t). Every creature looks as if it’s actually there with all the characteristics and identity markers you would need — whether it’s a giant frog coming out of a swimming pool, giant sand gobblers, a boulder snail, caterpillar, jellyfish, the queen sand gobbler or crab. (Two thumbs up to the CGI department.)

When it comes to special features you get some deleted scenes, a behind the scenes look at the the cast in Bottom of the Food Chain and lastly, It’s A Monster’s World; how they created a post-apocalyptic landscape. Three features that you can add to your viewing after you’ve finished the film — if that kind of thing interests you.

In conclusion —

Taking everything I’ve said into account, Love and Monsters gets my recommendation to own — it’s a fun, fresh and creative post-apocalyptic film that looks great in UHD. If I had to say something negative? I’m not the biggest fan of the ending of the film — it’s not bad, buy I don’t know why we need to hint more films before we solidify the love the first one. Would I like to see another film or two in the future? The snow-spiders in the mountains? Yes, but with the world we live in today, I’m not sure if that’s even possible anymore.

No matter what you decide to do with this film or the future, you can grab a copy at your local retailer on 4K & Blu-ray January 5th, 2021.

Are you a fan of Love and Monsters? Will you be picking it up to own? Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Cheers,

Matt.

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