VFX artists analyze scenes from Love and Monsters
starring Dylan O’Brien expressing surprise at the film’s $30 million budget. Released in 2020 and directed by Michael Matthews, Love and Monsters stars O’Brien as Joel, a passionate survivor of a monstrous apocalypse who sets out to find his high school sweetheart. The film, which features a handful of visual effects-heavy monster action sequences, was a critical success and currently boasts a strong 94% on Rotten Tomatoes.
In a recent episode of the “VFX Artists React” series on YouTube, VFX artists from Runner Crew react to scenes Love and Monsterswhich they praise for doing a lot with a relatively small budget. Sam Gorski guesses that one of the reasons the film was made with this level of budget is the lack of practical effects, and he and co-hosts Wren Weichman and Niko Pueringer praise the filmmaking used to support this approach.
The Corridor hosts also express surprise at some of the production methods used, which included an inflatable crab as a stand-in for a large crab-like monster. Check out Weichman’s commentary on the film or watch the full segment in the video below:
“They quickly realized early in the production process on this film that, okay, we’re going to have to rely on all these monsters being just CG and simulated from the beginning. Because it was a smaller budget film, each shot had to be very deliberate.
“They had to be very intentional about everything they were doing and make sure they were doing it right, because they couldn’t just say, ‘Oh, we’ll fix that later.’ It was like, no, we have to do this properly now. Furthermore, this film was nominated for an Oscar for best visual effects.”
What Love And Monsters’ strong visual effects meant for the film’s reception
How the film fared critically and commercially
In addition to a 94% critic score on Rotten tomatoesPopcornmeter, previously called audience score, reaches a high of 89% for Love and Monsters. Although the film’s effects were a common point of praise many reviews praised the film’s surprising level of emotional depth. There’s plenty of monster action throughout, especially in the Love and Monsters finale, but it’s all anchored by O’Brien’s compelling lead performance and a touching love story.
Unfortunately, the film’s positive reception did not translate into box office success. Love and Monsters was originally slated for a wide theatrical release, but the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic changed Paramount’s plans. The film was released on VOD the same day it opened in just a few hundred theaters and grossed just over $1 million at the box office. Love and Monsters It also wasn’t successful at the Oscars.losing the Best VFX award to Christopher Nolan Principle.
Our Take on Love and Monsters Visual Effects
The film remains a highlight in O’Brien’s career
O’Brien continues to work regularly in Hollywood, recently appearing as part of the cast of Saturday nightbut their projects varied greatly in terms of success and scale. He remains perhaps best known for his starring role in Labyrinth Corridor trilogy and Love and Monsters came just two years after the franchise concluded. The monster movie was able to take advantage of his physicality and action hero qualities while letting a softer side shine.
O’Brien is one of Love and Monsters‘s greatest strengths, but the film certainly wouldn’t have succeeded on a quality level without its VFX. The movie’s monsters are creative and unique, and they also manage to look remarkably real considering the film’s modest budget. While it’s not uncommon to see a film of this genre made for $80 million or more, Love and Monsters remains a testament to the visual effects feats that can be achieved when directors are intimately aware of how to best plan CGI-heavy sequences.
Source: Runner Crew