Film Review: “Save Yourselves” Laughingly Asks If You Can
You ever watch a Zombie movie and think, “Yeah, I would definitely not survive that!” I have! I have watched slasher films or haunted house pics, and genuinely known in my spirit, with absolute certainty, that I would not survive. (lol!) Part of the charm of Save Yourselves, out October 2, is that its leads are two people who are well aware that they are the least likely to survive an alien invasion but damnit they have to try!
Sunita Mani plays Su and John Paul Reynolds plays Jack; a couple of Brooklyn Millennials whose desire to cut off from their busy, buzzy tech lives completely screws them over. Why? Because there is never a worst time to cut off from society, and all access to it, then during an alien invasion. Mani and Reynolds are so casually quirky as a pair of nerds that have fallen in love with each other but are feeling the pangs of their routine life. They want more and an isolated cabin feels like the perfect place to spark creativity and adventure….. unless it is an alien invasion.
SAVE YOURSELVES! I Official Trailer I Bleecker Street
The charisma of Save Yourselves is that Su and Jack are good, regular people. They are frumpy, frenetic, and really kind; even taking an abandoned baby in when the only thing they have to attack potential aliens are tennis rackets and wine bottles. Yet, it is the sweetness of their hearts matched with their haphazard approach at a scenario, which most of us would fumble, that makes them both relatable and silly. The latter not being the easiest thing to pull off and remain likable. Silliness and cheesiness share a blurry line, but, again, Mani and Reynolds build the chemistry between their characters by making sure the audience knows they are sweethearts, even if they are smashing adorable, evil alien poofs to death.
Written and directed by Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson, the 93 minute film felt like a welcome to quarantined life. Out October 6, on streaming platforms, it felt easy and light-hearted in a time where those two emotions no longer feel as accessible. In addition, the whole film derives its comedy over the fact that its two leads have no idea how to conquer a surreal situation, which, frankly, is what we are in. Su and Jack are, literally, looking for cellphone service throughout the flick because, admittedly, even I would want a familial text or, at least, google “How To Survive Aliens” in the middle of an invasion. Lord knows people are googling how to survive this pandemic!
