COLOSSAL is one of those movies where even the description could be considered a spoiler by the biggest sticklers of the term. So, if you've managed to avoid seeing the trailers or ads for it and you are uber spoiler-phobic -
go away now.
(I don't like spoilers myself, so I will remain pretty vague on details)
Nacho Vigalondo's TIMECRIMES (2007) was a solid B Movie time travel (shown at this February's 'thon) effort that's been overpraised in some quarters as one of the best of that subgenre. Similarly, COLOSSAL has been overpraised as a oddball mashup of genres - it's a quirky indie dramedy crossed with a sci-fi monster flick. The quirk factor is high from the get-go with Anne Hathaway as one of those loveable messes who can't get her life in order. Soon she ends up in her old hometown and meets up with a childhood friend (Jason Sudekis). And, then..........there's a giant monster in South Korea. The two stories interconnect in a fairly unexpected way. So far. Not bad. Unfortunately, from then on, the 'quirky indie' portion goes from light fun to fairly serious drama to eventual just plain sourness. It also takes over the movie, leaving the sci-fi elements to the background.
As with TIMECRIMES, Vigalondo is more comfortable with the sci-fi elements, and less so with the drama. And, the imbalance finally tips the movie on the wrong side of the ledger. Further, the overpraise is mainly coming from mainstream critics who find the premise more novel than seasoned genre folks who've seen plenty of symbolic 'Monsters From The Id' tales.
Hathaway and Sudekis are good in their roles, even if the script fails them in the end. The SFX are surprisingly solid for a modestly budget effort. It's just unfortunate that two halves of the movie pull it apart, rather than create a whole.
P.S. Nitpick: After a couple of days of predictable Monster mayhem at a certain place and time - why would HUGE crowds gather right there just begging to become monster meat?
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