Colossal

Colossal

Dir. Nacho Vigalondo

109 Minutes

USA 2016

Starring: Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis, Austin Stowell, Tim Blake Nelson, Dan Stevens

****/*****

Nacho Vigalondo's Colossal may perhaps have the most original concept in years. Of course, a concept does not make or break a film. There are countless examples of films with glorious and ambitious concepts that lack in any type of worthwhile execution. But when a concept can make one smile when first introduced, and then chuckle a bit following the next major development, and then smile goofily during the next, and finally applaud and perhaps even a shed a tear during the climax, as in the case with Colossal, then one knows they are in the presence of something special. 

Anne Hathaway gives an extremely committed performance as Gloria, who, at the start of the film, has seen better days. Sheepishly sneaking into her apartment following yet another night of binge drinking, Gloria is forced to have a standoff with her long-time, live-in boyfriend Tim, who has simply had enough of her behavior. He packs her bags and she moves back to her hometown. Shortly after her arrival, Gloria bumps into her childhood friend Oscar (Jason Sudeikis) who is extremely welcoming and quickly sets Gloria up with furniture, an introduction to some friends, and a part-time job at a bar he inherited from his father. Oscar clearly hopes to use his kindness as a gateway to something more romantic, though Gloria either does not pick up on these hints or just ignores it. However before this plot is able to develop, the homecoming is interrupted one morning at exactly 8:05am by an attack from a giant lizard monster in Seoul, South Korea. The attack is repeated the following day and during the news telecast Gloria notices that the monster is mimicking her tic of scratching at a spot on her scalp ("like a monkey"), something she was doing while standing on a certain playground at the same time that morning. She becomes convinced that the monster is somehow a physical embodiment of her actions in that particular place. 

Colossal is a film that truly benefits from knowing very little about it. Some would argue that even the above plot line reveals too many elements of the fun. And every development of this narrative makes the plot dangerously teeter on the edge of the overly absurd, but Hathaway and Sudeikis are so strong in their roles that the reality of the situation somehow always feels present. It helps that Vigalondo lays the groundwork in his script to explore heavy issues of alcoholism, abuse, and misogyny. It does not feel like a spoiler to say that the events being portrayed in this film are certainly real and not some form of Gloria's imagination, but the events can certainly read to be a manifest of her many personal crisis. Vigalondo is not nearly as strong with mixing tones (some moments feel a bit "too real" and shocking amidst the absurdity of the main plot), but his ambition of wishing to explore such heavy topics within the surface of a genre film are quite admirable. Sudeikis' typical "nice-guy" routine is beautifully manipulated to make it surprising when the character takes a dark turn (this is reminiscent of Joel Egerton's crafty thriller The Gift where he similarly casts Jason Bateman using his typical personal as a way to gain empathy from the audience used to seeing him in a certain way, only to counter by revealing several disturbing secrets about the character). Sudeikis is kind of a revelation here and shows a depth and range unseen from him before. Like many good comedians, he finds a way to hold back and find subtle outlets for the rage brewing inside of him, coming out during some extremely well-acted tense moments throughout. The directions that do occasionally go false with the character are a result of the screenplay, but Sudeikis plays strongly to the end. And Hathaway finds a nice middle ground between the goofy and the serious. Gloria's problems are very serious indeed, and to add them to this very absurd new set of issues makes for a very complex role indeed. Hathaway has a sort of Lucille Ball type gait about her, and gets to tap into several moments of physical comedy unseen from her since the early Princess Diaries days. Mesh that with the addiction of Rachel Getting Married and the foundation of Gloria's character feels defined. 

Colossal​ does manage to stick the landing, despite having so many places where the film could go haywire. And it even ends with a small chuckle that reminds one of the fallibility of Hathaway's character despite the successes she has earned. This is a film full of both grand entertainment and genuine emotion. A funny, wacky, often sweet, ode to kaiju cinema that shows that such a homage does not have to simply consist of explosions and demolished buildings, but also have truly developed, flawed people at its core. 

September 27th, 2016