Save Yourselves! starts off slow and by the time you get to the good stuff, you honestly just don’t care anymore.
When I first read the description of Save Yourselves! I was super excited. I am a big fan of Indie horror films because they are usually a lot of fun. However, Save Yourselves! felt like it took about forty minutes to pick up and by the time it did, I really just didn’t care anymore. I kept waiting for the big ending and what I got was not nearly enough for me to recommend this movie to anyone.
The premise of the film is a young couple, played by Sunita Mani and John Reynolds, decide to unplug for a week. They go to a friend’s lake house and turn off their cellphones. Soon (I say soon but it is a full 40 minutes into the movie) they discover that the world has been invaded by little puffy aliens — who drink ethanol and murder people with their tongues. That is a little too bizarre, even for me.
All that being said, if there was more action, more blood, and more gore, I probably would have liked it better. There are a couple of moments where I giggled out loud to myself, but the humor fades by the middle of the film.
And be warned, this movie does get a little political. Especially about guns. They discuss the statistics of killing yourself or a friend instead of the alien. For me? I don’t really like guns (although I don’t condemn owning one) so this didn’t bother me. But I have some friends and family members I know would be upset by it so I felt like I needed to mention it.
The beginning of the film does a good job at showing us how disconnected we are because of social media and technology. The couple is asking Alexa, Google, and Siri to do everything for them, and they even stop kissing to check their phones. However, by the end that message seems to fall apart, much like the movie itself.
Overall Thoughts
You can tell it is a low budget Indie movie, but is that such a bad thing all the time? No, not always. I thought about turning this movie off several times while watching it, but it wasn’t because of that. Honestly, it wasn’t because of the lead actors either. Sunita Mani and John Reynolds were the best part of the movie, but something about the plot just never hooked me. And normally I am all about this sort of thing.
As Save Yourselves! went on, I kept waiting for a big reveal. One that just never happened. Sure, we discover the world is falling apart and being invaded by poofy aliens, but it takes 40 minutes to even get there. The way it ended could have worked, but I had long given up by that point and it just seemed weird and annoying. Annoying because well, we don’t really know what is going to happen to the main characters — nothing is clear cut.
I know there is a group of people who will really like this movie, I am just not one of them.
About Save Yourselves!
Jack (John Reynolds) and Su (Sunita Mani) are a hip Brooklyn couple who, like many of their friends, find themselves dependent on technology and unable to put down their phones. Fearing their mindless scrolling may impact their connection with each other, they seize the chance to head to an isolated cabin in the woods, vowing to unplug from the outside world for a week. Sheltered from texts and push notifications, they are blissfully unaware that the planet is under attack. As strange events unfold, the couple must figure out a way back to civilization—or what’s left of it.
BONUS FEATURES ON BLU-RAY™, DVD & DIGITAL:
- *POUFFE! The Visual Effects Magic of SAVE YOURSELVES! – The Filmmakers and crew discuss some of the inventive practical effects they used to bring the film’s alien cast members to life.
- Deleted and Extended Scenes
- Blooper Reel
- Feature Commentary with Director/Writer Alex Huston Fischer and Director/Writer Eleanor Wilson
*Bonus Feature available only on the Digital version
Save Yourselves hits select theaters October 2nd
and is available on Digital, DVD, and Blu-ray October 6th!
