Monday is a dark romantic comedy that does its best to show what true love is like — complete with all its flaws.
Monday is a dark romantic comedy that dives deep into the story of true love. This movie shows the darkest moments, as well as the brightest. Though the pacing is sometimes off, and the two leads lack the level of chemistry I would have liked to see, the movie overall is very compelling and fascinating. Much like a train wreck, it is hard to look away as the dark side of love is explored.
Monday is about Mickey and Chloe who meet at a party and are instantly attracted to one another. The dark romantic comedy dives into their story, as their relationship goes through its natural peaks and valleys.
This movie has quite a bit of nudity – both male and female – and there are some moments that can be triggering. In the interest of not giving away too much of the film, this article will not go into detail, but if you have been in troubling relationships, be warned.
What Works With Monday
It should be said that Monday is very well cast. Both Sebastian Stan, who plays Mickey, and Denise Gough, who plays Chloe, do a decent job in their roles – especially when shown individually or in a fight. Without Argyris Papadimitropoulos’ directing, I fear that the lack of romantic chemistry would have torn apart the film. Dominique Tipper, who plays an ex-band mate of Mickey’s named Bastian, feels a bit too underused though, as she was one of the best parts of the film.
Being Greek, one of my favorite parts of this film was seeing the beauty of a country I have not yet visited, but have wanted to for a very long time. Many of the Greek characters seemed to be perfectly portrayed on the screen, and I could relate a lot of my family to those in the film.
The story itself is extremely captivating and I found myself wondering what was going to happen to Mickey and Chloe next, and where their relationship would end up.
What Doesn’t Work With Monday
There are two big issues with this movie. The first is that it is nearly impossible to tell how much time is passing. There are several times that the word “FRIDAY” appears on the screen before a scene, seemingly indicating that another week has passed. That is the assumption that is made anyways, but it is close to impossible to know for sure.
This makes it hard for the audience to judge how this relationship is going, and how long it has been a thing for. It certainly would have made more sense for the word to be “MONDAY”, considering the title of the film.
The other issue with Monday is the lack of chemistry between the two leads. While they individually do a decent enough job, with Stan being the standout, there is something lacking between them, which makes the story itself unbelievable at parts. They are best when fighting with each other, but during the passionate scenes it just doesn’t feel real.
Overall Thoughts
While Monday explores true love in the realest way possible, there are some issues, like the pacing and inability to know exactly how much time has passed, that drags the story down. The stellar performances from Sebastian Stan and Dominique Tipper take this movie to the next level, and make it a must watch. Without them, it is likely the movie would be less than mediocre.
Monday clocks in at just about two hours, which is one of its biggest downfalls. This unfortunately allows the off pacing and chemistry issues with the two leads to be dwelled upon a bit too long. However, the story itself and the realness of it makes this a decent movie overall.
About Monday
Mickey (Sebastian Stan) and Chloe (Denise Gough), two Americans in their mid-thirties living in Athens, meet in the heat of summer one whirlwind weekend. The chemistry between them is undeniable. When Chloe’s time in Greece is drawing to a close, she decides to give up her high-flying job back home and explore whether one weekend’s passion can blossom into something more. Argyris Papadimitropoulos’ follow up of the festival sensation Suntan is a fun, sensuous romance about how love gets in the way of life, and life gets in the way of love.
MONDAY opens in Select Theaters, on Digital Platforms and VOD on April 16th.
