Your drunken blackouts have nothing on Hathaway’s
Film | by Jorge Ignacio Castillo
Colossal
The Roxy
Opens May 12
Science fiction is often thought as fundamentally American, due to the fact few outside Hollywood can afford to dabble in special effects-heavy genres. This phenomenon has limited sci-fi’s vast reach to a parade of special effects with little substance and far from enlightening.
Somehow, Colossal brings together a European sensibility and a decent budget — a combination that results in a character-driven robot movie. Think Transformers with a soul.
Gloria (Anne Hathaway) has a particularly bad day when her boyfriend dumps her and kicks her out of his apartment. Not that she doesn’t have it coming: Gloria is irresponsible and a little too fond of the bottle.
Out of options, Gloria heads back to her hometown, where at least her bad habits don’t have such calamitous consequences. Or so she thinks: at the same time she reconnects with her high school chums, a Godzilla-sized beast creates havoc in Seoul. Don’t wish to spoil the connection between the two. Suffice it to say Gloria gets a primer on self-destructive behaviour and collateral damage.
Never mind the life lessons: Colossal is a lot of fun. Hathaway is a gifted comic actress perhaps too fond of drama (stop encouraging her). Her performance as a party girl dealing with her reckoning is more of a feat than a kaiju leveling Korea. The psychological insight is limited but serviceable, particularly when comparing Sarah with fellow underachiever Oscar (Jason Sudeikis), an angry drunk with a chip on his shoulder.
Spanish director Nacho Vigalondo (Timecrimes) has a knack for making his characters human, even in the face of annihilation. While his English dialogue needs work, Vigalondo has a good handle on comedy and massive things stepping on people. The combination works even better than I expected. ❧