Movie Breakdown: Save Yourselves!
Pre-Screening Stance:
I only just recently became acquainted with John Reynolds (by way of Search Party) and Sunita Mani (via The Death Of Dick Long and those Progressive commercials), but I already like the two of them a lot and I’m eager to see them together in this very fun-looking movie.
Post-Screening Ramble:
For those that have been in need of a nice sci-fi rom-com, Save Yourselves! will get the job done. It follows Jack (John Reynolds) and Su (Sunita Mani), a couple who suddenly realize that they really need to get away from their screens. So, they turn off their phones, laptops, etc. and retreat to a cabin that’s deep in the woods. Whilst unplugged, aliens invade Earth.
The extraterrestrials here are a fun detail, but Save Yourselves! is really about Jack and Su and the way in which they fully rely on their phones. The two of them don’t seem to be capable of anything without the assistance of the internet, and watching them try to get by solely on their own is both very funny and a bit troubling (because let’s be real, it’s relatable). I did think that the movie occasionally lets their incompetence skew a little too silly, but John Reynolds and Sunita Mani are so likeable that it evens it all out. Hell, I’d even say that their high level of likeability is what keeps the film afloat when it runs out of steam in the third act. There really needed to a couple of big moments to bring everything together, but writer/director duo Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson skimp on that and just let Save Yourselves! coast to a stop. This – for me – is what slides the film into fun-but-forgettable territory.
I liked Save Yourselves!. It’s nothing groundbreaking and you’ll likely take it in and toss it right out when you’re done with it, but it is worth 90 minutes of your time.
One Last Thought:
The alien “pouffes” in this are teased just enough to leave you wanting to know more about them. That’s likely for the best, as they’re not really the point of the movie, but I wouldn’t have been against a little something extra in the credits, especially with the way the film ends.
