This is a movie that is very reminiscent of folk tales. I would put this in the same category as "Prancer", which came out about the same time Movies starring children that explore some very dark themes and feature fairly realistic child-like reactions to what is around them. It's a great example of a realistic and flawed child eventually learning some real hard lessons and in the end making some very smart decisions through what they learned.
Old "children's stories" were quite harsh and graphic. Read the original Little Mermaid or Cinderella or Hansel and Gretal or Snow White, these are extraordinarily dark tales that were told to kids. This is not any different, it is quite dark. This is a good script, and I don't care how many people claim it's not. Even the "goofs" or plot holes stated here on IMDB really or not. Well, there are technical errors, but I do not mean those. This movie is treated, much like "North", as if they were the worst films ever made. Now, I'm a fan of "North" as well, but that movie is actually genuinely offensive at times, but also extremely misunderstood. It's a child's fantasy based on a child's view of the world. "Little Monsters" is actually quite a bit more adult. It has some very heavy themes. It is dark, violent at times, and even tense. It is also very fun, silly, and exciting. Watching this as a child was a fun experience, but watching it as an adult is so different. I watch it once every few years, and every time, I notice things I missed.
There are some things that do not age well, mainly some of the costumes and effects. Particularly, the reveal of "Boy" is creepy, until you realize it's a hand puppet. It's obvious the budget was lacking in terms of making believable costumes for all involved. Maurice looks amazing still to this day, his makeup is fantastic, and must have been a chore to have put on daily. Some of the monsters have decent costumes, some are just masks. I imagine most of the money went into building the monsters world itself, and it is fantastic. How can you say this is bad? Do you realize how much attention to detail this set has? How much time it must have taken? It's aged infinitely better than the best cgi backdrops ever will, it will always look good. Even if all they did was build stairs and string lights and use a wharehouse or a theater, this still took a lot of planning, a lot of thought. Despite the obvious udget constraints, they made it generally look good. The food digital effects that are used, such as sparkles, and disappearing into the floor still look good. Everything else is practical. Masks, makeup, hand puppets, real sets.
The acting is actually mostly spot on. Ben Savage tries not to smile in a few scenes when he should be serious, but he's still charming, it's cute. Fred Savage is really good here, he's confident, self-assured, and never misses a beat. This is a smart kid who doesn't tend to second guess himself, though he can be a little hot headed. This is a good character, he is actually very well-written, he has emotional highs and lows, he cares about people, he gets scared, but he's also willing to confront it, he uses foul language at times like young kids do, he can be rude, but he can also be highly thoughtful. I think those bagging on this film are not understanding what a well-written character this is.
This is a great script. It is exciting right out of the gate. It never really dies off, the script builds on itself. You have a kid who is adjusting to his new life in a new home and a new school. He butts heads with a jerk at school, but he isn't pushed around by him, they push each other. The girl he likes is a highly intelligent tomboy, he appreciates these qualities about her. He expresses them in an age appropriate way. There is so much going on here, I could write a dissertation. This is definitely.an examination of growing up, but.it also seems to follow the stages of grief, remember Brian got ripped away from the life he knew, there is indeed grief involved here from the beginning, but not only does he have that grief, but later on grief on multiple fronts within his family, I will not ruin that. He absolutely goes through Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance multiple times in the movie. The ending is completely about acceptance, in numerous regards I cannot go through without spoiling the film. Brian has to make several adult decisions in this film, and he actually makes some very good and very bad realistic decisions. He also does indeed pay for them. A lot of these choices can be comedic, but it doesn't actually take away from their gravity at all.
I get why people hate this film, it's easy to hate. It does have a rather annoying main character in Maurice, but even though he's very childish, as he says he's 11yrs, for 200yrs. He still very much has the mentality of a young boy, which even though Howie Mandell is very much not a child, he has the child like exuberance here to make the character work. The character frequently does and says gross things. There are jokes about piss, jokes about other bodily functions, hints at some sexual things. The interactions between the children feels fairly real, they use words that a not "child friendly", as did I at their age. Most kids do, we hear words, we repeat them, we say gross things make jokes about gross things all the time as kids. This movie gets this spot on. The children are resourceful and make the best use of what's around them that they can. One of my favorite parts is when Brian first meets Maurice and finds out his weakness is light, he refuses to go anywhere with him with a flashlight. He doesn't back down on it. He refuses to ack down later when faced with the disgustingly creepy and child-like "boy". He is a solid character.
I really do think this is a great movie all around, despite it's flaws, the script, the overall execution, the acting, the sets, makes it, in my opinion, one of the best children's films ever made; I'm serious. It isn't "squeaky clean", but it teaches some really good lessons. The ending is touching, and silly at the same time. It's just a fun movie that is serious at the same time. It is a cute fantasy about dealing with grief and learning to grow up.
Old "children's stories" were quite harsh and graphic. Read the original Little Mermaid or Cinderella or Hansel and Gretal or Snow White, these are extraordinarily dark tales that were told to kids. This is not any different, it is quite dark. This is a good script, and I don't care how many people claim it's not. Even the "goofs" or plot holes stated here on IMDB really or not. Well, there are technical errors, but I do not mean those. This movie is treated, much like "North", as if they were the worst films ever made. Now, I'm a fan of "North" as well, but that movie is actually genuinely offensive at times, but also extremely misunderstood. It's a child's fantasy based on a child's view of the world. "Little Monsters" is actually quite a bit more adult. It has some very heavy themes. It is dark, violent at times, and even tense. It is also very fun, silly, and exciting. Watching this as a child was a fun experience, but watching it as an adult is so different. I watch it once every few years, and every time, I notice things I missed.
There are some things that do not age well, mainly some of the costumes and effects. Particularly, the reveal of "Boy" is creepy, until you realize it's a hand puppet. It's obvious the budget was lacking in terms of making believable costumes for all involved. Maurice looks amazing still to this day, his makeup is fantastic, and must have been a chore to have put on daily. Some of the monsters have decent costumes, some are just masks. I imagine most of the money went into building the monsters world itself, and it is fantastic. How can you say this is bad? Do you realize how much attention to detail this set has? How much time it must have taken? It's aged infinitely better than the best cgi backdrops ever will, it will always look good. Even if all they did was build stairs and string lights and use a wharehouse or a theater, this still took a lot of planning, a lot of thought. Despite the obvious udget constraints, they made it generally look good. The food digital effects that are used, such as sparkles, and disappearing into the floor still look good. Everything else is practical. Masks, makeup, hand puppets, real sets.
The acting is actually mostly spot on. Ben Savage tries not to smile in a few scenes when he should be serious, but he's still charming, it's cute. Fred Savage is really good here, he's confident, self-assured, and never misses a beat. This is a smart kid who doesn't tend to second guess himself, though he can be a little hot headed. This is a good character, he is actually very well-written, he has emotional highs and lows, he cares about people, he gets scared, but he's also willing to confront it, he uses foul language at times like young kids do, he can be rude, but he can also be highly thoughtful. I think those bagging on this film are not understanding what a well-written character this is.
This is a great script. It is exciting right out of the gate. It never really dies off, the script builds on itself. You have a kid who is adjusting to his new life in a new home and a new school. He butts heads with a jerk at school, but he isn't pushed around by him, they push each other. The girl he likes is a highly intelligent tomboy, he appreciates these qualities about her. He expresses them in an age appropriate way. There is so much going on here, I could write a dissertation. This is definitely.an examination of growing up, but.it also seems to follow the stages of grief, remember Brian got ripped away from the life he knew, there is indeed grief involved here from the beginning, but not only does he have that grief, but later on grief on multiple fronts within his family, I will not ruin that. He absolutely goes through Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance multiple times in the movie. The ending is completely about acceptance, in numerous regards I cannot go through without spoiling the film. Brian has to make several adult decisions in this film, and he actually makes some very good and very bad realistic decisions. He also does indeed pay for them. A lot of these choices can be comedic, but it doesn't actually take away from their gravity at all.
I get why people hate this film, it's easy to hate. It does have a rather annoying main character in Maurice, but even though he's very childish, as he says he's 11yrs, for 200yrs. He still very much has the mentality of a young boy, which even though Howie Mandell is very much not a child, he has the child like exuberance here to make the character work. The character frequently does and says gross things. There are jokes about piss, jokes about other bodily functions, hints at some sexual things. The interactions between the children feels fairly real, they use words that a not "child friendly", as did I at their age. Most kids do, we hear words, we repeat them, we say gross things make jokes about gross things all the time as kids. This movie gets this spot on. The children are resourceful and make the best use of what's around them that they can. One of my favorite parts is when Brian first meets Maurice and finds out his weakness is light, he refuses to go anywhere with him with a flashlight. He doesn't back down on it. He refuses to ack down later when faced with the disgustingly creepy and child-like "boy". He is a solid character.
I really do think this is a great movie all around, despite it's flaws, the script, the overall execution, the acting, the sets, makes it, in my opinion, one of the best children's films ever made; I'm serious. It isn't "squeaky clean", but it teaches some really good lessons. The ending is touching, and silly at the same time. It's just a fun movie that is serious at the same time. It is a cute fantasy about dealing with grief and learning to grow up.