A dangerous quest in ‘Love and Monsters’
A monster apocalypse tops the new DVD releases for the week of Jan. 5.
“Love and Monsters”: Monsters have overtaken the world and decimated 90% of humanity. Young Joel Dawson (Dylan O’Brien) survived by fleeing underground, but his yearning for love compels him to find his high school sweetheart, Aimee, at a different colony dozens of miles away – and he has to go above ground to get there.
It’s reminiscent of “A Quiet Place” and “Zombieland,” not to mention pandemic anxiety, to mixed results, wrote Noel Murray in his review for the Los Angeles Times.
“The story really only finds a good groove in its final third, when Joel has a major setback and discovers courage and perseverance can only carry him so far,” Murray wrote. “Though it’s moderately likable throughout, only when “Love and Monsters” gets serious about the difficulties of Joel’s situation does it feel genuinely relevant.”
ALSO NEW ON DVD
“12 Hour Shift”: A nurse with a drug addiction (Angela Bettis) and her cousin (Chloe Farnworth) devise an organ trafficking scheme at an Arkansas hospital.
“Mystery Road, Series 2”: Australian neo-Western mystery series returns as Detective Jay Swan (Aaron Pedersen) heads to a new town to solve a new murder.
“The 100: The Seventh and Final Season”: The CW postapocalyptic sci-fi series comes to a close.
“Yellow Rose”: A young Filipina singer in Texas (Eva Noblezada) grapples with following her dreams of becoming a country star amid family woes.
“American Dream”: A pair of entrepreneurs (Michiel Huisman and Luke Bracey) face the wrath of a Russian mobster (Nick Stahl) after refusing his money. Out on DVD Jan. 12.
“Audrey”: Documentary follows the life of the legendary Audrey Hepburn.
“Gun and a Hotel Bible”: A man (Bradley Gosnell) reconsiders the murder he plans to commit after finding a Bible in his hotel room.
“His Dark Materials: Season 2”: The show based on the novel series by Philip Pullman returns as Lyra (Dafne Keen) makes her way to Cittagazze after stepping through the portal.
“Industry: Season 1”: A group of job candidates compete for roles at a top London bank.
“Lena & Snowball”: A young girl finds a white lion cub and must protect him from poachers. Look for it on DVD Jan. 12.
8 PM^ JUnited in Song: Celebrating the Resilience of America Airing as part of PBS’ national New Year’s Eve special broadcast, this 90-minute program includes performances filmed at George Washington’s Virginia home at Mount Vernon and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Program details are still to be announced, but reportedly are being planned to encourage the nation to come together again and unite to embrace and celebrate our shared irrepressible strength as Americans.