What Happened to Monday (Netflix Original)
I have been a Netflix subscriber for many years, and honestly I'm really impressed with the quality of their originals. I've become a fan of Grace and Frankie, House of Cards, The Ranch, Travelers, The OA, Stranger Things, and probably some others I've forgotten. So when I get an alert that they're releasing a new original, my ears perk up a bit. It could still be crap, but I'll at least give it the benefit of the doubt.
They just released a feature-length original called What Happened to Monday. It begins by preying on a lot of fears. Overpopulation produces a worldwide food shortage. Switching to GMOs helps alleviate that shortage, but has the unexpected side effect of boosting fertility, which again, puts a stress on the food supply. To counterbalance this, the government enacts a strict one child policy. Any family with more than one child has to give up the extra so that they can be put into cryosleep, suspended animation until the time comes when they are able to solve the problem (however long that may take). One woman breaks that policy and gives birth to seven identical daughters before she dies. She somehow found a doctor and a crew of nurses willing to birth her children and not report her to the authorities. They are left in the hands of their grandfather, played by Willem Dafoe.
Grandpa Billy (I've forgotten his character's name and I'm too lazy to look it up right now) names the seven girls after the days of the week. He homeschools them for the most part, but the time comes when they need to go out into the public. He creates a singular identity, Karen Settman, which was their mother (ok, so it's grandpa Settman then). He jerry-rigs their identity bracelets so that they all read the same, because nothing, and I mean nothing, can be done without scanning your bracelet. You can't even buy a skinned rat at your local bodega without a scan. Seems a little overkill, honestly, but that's just me maybe.
He keeps trying to emphasize to the girls that they have to work as a team, that they have to share information and be careful, because what happens to one has to happen to them all. This becomes painfully (literally) obvious when one of the girls has a skateboard accident and severs the tip of one of her fingers.
The girls grow up and get a job at a bank. They have I swear the most remarkable mirror - I hope nothing else in this film comes to pass, but if someone could please get to work on this mirror. It evaluates your skin and tells you not just where you need to concentrate some cover-up, but gives you a pretty good physical evaluation, telling you when you're dehydrated, etc. Well, I thought it was cool. Anyhoo, one day all the sisters (all played by Noomi Rapace) are sitting around eating their baked rat, talking about the presentation at work and the promotion they are all up for. The next day, they eagerly await Monday's return so they can find out how it went, but she never comes home. They're at a loss as to what to do. Tuesday decides she's going to just go about her day as usual and see if she can find some things out. It quickly becomes obvious that somehow the government has twigged to their scheme.
It's an interesting concept. The film is fast-paced and action packed. There's not a lot that's hard to believe. One problem I did see was when one sister has a barefoot brawl in the bathroom where she gets beaten pretty badly. The next time you see her she's got those stilettos back on. Maybe it's me, since I'd really prefer to be barefoot all day, but stopping to put my Christian Louboutin back on would be the last thought in my head after having the shit kicked out of me. But I'm not that girly a girl, I guess. Although if I were to shell out that kinda coin on some shoes I wouldn't leave them behind either.
There are lots of twists that I honestly did not see coming. I think it's a reach in places, but if you can give the initial plot a chance, I think you'll find it enjoyable.
They just released a feature-length original called What Happened to Monday. It begins by preying on a lot of fears. Overpopulation produces a worldwide food shortage. Switching to GMOs helps alleviate that shortage, but has the unexpected side effect of boosting fertility, which again, puts a stress on the food supply. To counterbalance this, the government enacts a strict one child policy. Any family with more than one child has to give up the extra so that they can be put into cryosleep, suspended animation until the time comes when they are able to solve the problem (however long that may take). One woman breaks that policy and gives birth to seven identical daughters before she dies. She somehow found a doctor and a crew of nurses willing to birth her children and not report her to the authorities. They are left in the hands of their grandfather, played by Willem Dafoe.
Grandpa Billy (I've forgotten his character's name and I'm too lazy to look it up right now) names the seven girls after the days of the week. He homeschools them for the most part, but the time comes when they need to go out into the public. He creates a singular identity, Karen Settman, which was their mother (ok, so it's grandpa Settman then). He jerry-rigs their identity bracelets so that they all read the same, because nothing, and I mean nothing, can be done without scanning your bracelet. You can't even buy a skinned rat at your local bodega without a scan. Seems a little overkill, honestly, but that's just me maybe.
He keeps trying to emphasize to the girls that they have to work as a team, that they have to share information and be careful, because what happens to one has to happen to them all. This becomes painfully (literally) obvious when one of the girls has a skateboard accident and severs the tip of one of her fingers.
The girls grow up and get a job at a bank. They have I swear the most remarkable mirror - I hope nothing else in this film comes to pass, but if someone could please get to work on this mirror. It evaluates your skin and tells you not just where you need to concentrate some cover-up, but gives you a pretty good physical evaluation, telling you when you're dehydrated, etc. Well, I thought it was cool. Anyhoo, one day all the sisters (all played by Noomi Rapace) are sitting around eating their baked rat, talking about the presentation at work and the promotion they are all up for. The next day, they eagerly await Monday's return so they can find out how it went, but she never comes home. They're at a loss as to what to do. Tuesday decides she's going to just go about her day as usual and see if she can find some things out. It quickly becomes obvious that somehow the government has twigged to their scheme.
It's an interesting concept. The film is fast-paced and action packed. There's not a lot that's hard to believe. One problem I did see was when one sister has a barefoot brawl in the bathroom where she gets beaten pretty badly. The next time you see her she's got those stilettos back on. Maybe it's me, since I'd really prefer to be barefoot all day, but stopping to put my Christian Louboutin back on would be the last thought in my head after having the shit kicked out of me. But I'm not that girly a girl, I guess. Although if I were to shell out that kinda coin on some shoes I wouldn't leave them behind either.
There are lots of twists that I honestly did not see coming. I think it's a reach in places, but if you can give the initial plot a chance, I think you'll find it enjoyable.
Comments
Post a Comment