Molli and Max in the Future

Molli and Max in the Future

Molli and Max in the Future

I can't give it the whole 10 stars, because, if there's something that I can't stand almost as much as my tinnitus it is, jazz lounge music...I could put it in the same list as babies crying in airplanes, cats in heat and overly happy parrots, and there's a lot of that music in this movie. Actually I think the whole soundtrack is jazzy music. Other than that it was awesome. Put in a blender, Futurama, When Harry met Sally, and one of the best written sketches from Saturday Night Live and you'll have this movie. There are so many kinds of humor, but in here you're going to find the intelligent kind, no rudeness, insult, stupid slapstick or dark. It's just clever and silly, just the way we feel when we are in love.

Molli and Max in the Future is probably too rom-com centric for sci-fi geeks and too bonko f/x-driven for Hallmark Channel subscribers. Written and directed by Michael Lukk Litwak, Molli and Max in the Future pays homage to Nora Ephron's When Harry Met Sally, as well as Woody Allen sex farces, all wrapped around a glitzy sci-fi rendering that looks like the backlot of Luc Besson's The Fifth Element. Litwak then takes Ephron and Allen's caffeinated humor and blends it down to a vanilla soy latte. Rude sex and emotional inadequacies are jettisoned in favor of Millennial over-achievement and career depression. Adapting Annie Hall in outer space makes for a great concept. Honestly though, when it comes to sci-fi and love, most Trekkies, Wookies, and Time Lords might instead opt to simply rewatch the Han & Leia scenes from The Empire Strikes Back.

After watching "Molli and Max in the Future" for the first time, I was left feeling a bit confused as to what I was supposed to be feeling by the time the credits rolled. A sense of confusion crept up on me, and I asked myself: Did I miss something? So I immediately decided to watch it again. The fact that I felt inclined to watch it one more time in less than 24 hours, and did so without feeling like it was homework, is a testament to how undeniably enjoyable the movie is. This is mainly due to the world created and put on screen by director Michael Lukk Litwak. Using the lower budget to his advantage, Litwak excels in bringing together practical and computer-generated effects to create a very unique futuristic society. It's a quirky, weird, and fun universe where humans coexist with fish-people, demi-gods lead sex cults, magic is real, and parallel universes are the newest tech commodity. The visual effects and production design are a feast for the eyes, putting to shame the effects of some of today's biggest blockbusters. It's a lesson on how much you can achieve with so little, as long as you have a distinct and creative vision. I would love to see more of what Litwak does with his ideas within the sci-fi niche. With that said, I can't say I loved the story. At its core, the film is a conversational romance in the spirit of "Before Sunset" (one of my favorite romance movies of all time), where we follow Molli and Max as they develop a friendship after their meet-cute and navigate through years of their lives crossing paths with each other. Beneath that friendship, however, lies deeper feelings that they both hold towards one another. One of my biggest complaints with the story is that I just couldn't be convinced that there was any romantic tension between the two main characters. Nothing in the narrative was done to really justify the love Max felt for Molli, or vice versa. It lacked emotion. Nevertheless, the movie does successfully show how they come off as great friends but fails to prove to the audience that they belong together as anything more than that. Finally, another gripe I had was with how much the movie was trying to preach and comment on current political and environmental issues of our society. Perhaps it may have seemed smart and funny on paper, but it really just came off as out of place, in-your-face, and excessive. Nothing is subtle, and I truly don't understand the point in stuffing the story with so many messages. The black holes created by the Cheese Company, the out-of-nowhere plague, the galactic ruler debate-it all felt forced, and personally, I didn't feel it fit or was needed. Overall, "Molli and Max in the Future" is a very unique and stylistic film with a creative vision and some clever comedic moments. Although not the greatest love story I've seen, I still recommend it as I feel it may leave somewhat of a lasting impact.

Greetings again from the darkness. I'll readily admit that I'm not an expert in outer space-based Science Fiction Romantic-Comedies. If you press me for a description of writer-director Michael Luk Litwak's film, it would be "WHEN HARRY MET SALLY ... in future space". Of course, this low budget flick is no match for Rob Reiner's classic 1989 Rom-Com, yet the mismatched couple and the recurring spontaneous meetups does strike some familiar chords. Zosia Mamet stars as Molli and Aristotle Athari is Max. Zosia is a quirky actress known for "Girls" and the daughter of renowned writer David Mamet. Aristotle is best known for the season he spent on "Saturday Night Live". This isn't one of those shock-and-awe super special effects sci-fi spectacles. Instead, beginning in Chapter One, spaceships collide. One driven by Molli and one by uninsured Max. Rather than bicker over fault, the two display out-of-this-world chemistry ... unorthodox chemistry for sure ... but chemistry nonetheless. Beginning with that initial bonding, viewers should brace themselves for non-stop banter whenever Molli and Max are together - something that happens frequently over the 12 years featured here. These reunions occur on various planets, across multiple dimensions, during a relationship with a robot, after joining a cult, and while living as a celebrity. One's enjoyment of the film will surely be determined by how the rapid-fire dialogue strikes - is it charming or grating? Those charmed will likely focus on the friendship/romantic two-step. Those annoyed will likely notice the political angle that filmmaker Litwak tries to sneak in. With Special Effects intentionally a notch below BARBARELLA (1968) and FLASH GORDON (1980), the green screen images may be cartoonish, but they fit with the overall tone here. This feels like one of those films that will find a very receptive niche following, while others will be baffled by the appeal. In theaters beginning February 9, 2024.

This is a conversational film. The conversation is fully of witty banter and good moments. Because it's a film, and not a pod cast, visuals are thrown in. Visuals that are often chaotic in nature and only serve to confuse matters. None of the visuals are necessary. You honestly never need to see anything.. close your eyes and listen, that's all one need do. Of course no one would ever know about this if it were merely a podcast. I did enjoy the banter and conversation.. However, I was often annoyed by the visuals. The two do not meld well. The writing for the conversation is fairly intricate and well thought out.. the visuals often appear cheap and reminiscent of 1999 CGI effects. Just listen.. don't watch....

Molli and Max in the Future is a blast from start to finish. The charming performances, clever writing, and incredible score set against the backdrop of a Futurama-type universe make this one of the most unique romantic comedies I have ever seen. Zosia Mamet and Aristotle Athari shine as Molli and Max with an equally hilarious supporting cast. This intergalactic adventure delivers laugh after laugh with its witty dialogue, quirky yet relatable characters, and whole lot of heart. Writer/Director Michael Lukk Litwak's spin on the sci-fi and romantic comedy genres offers viewers a refreshing deviation from the norm in each respective genre. Can't wait to see what this filmmaker does next.

This was one of the great discoveries of my time at the London Film Festival! The film takes place in a future universe which echoes the rainy, overbuilt, media-saturated cityscapes of Blade Runner and The Fifth Element. Its characters are sentient robots, demigods, and aliens. And yet they talk and behave like highly-strung New Yorkers who spend all their time philosophising in bars and complaining about their therapists. How brilliant is that! It's essentially a sci-fi retelling of When Harry Met Sally, with the two main characters falling in and out of each other's lives over the course of many years. Except, of course, one of the characters is a half-man-half-fish hybrid, and the other is able to fly. The joy and hilarity of the film come from how brilliantly it riffs on our messy modern lives. There are nods to social media, online dating, and even Donald Trump, while the attention to detail even in blink-and-you'll-miss-it moments is astonishing: packages are delivered by Amazon Slime! I laughed uproariously but also gasped at its visual ambition: the film was made with a tiny budget and skeleton crew, but uses practical and visual effects to create a world that is just as stunningly realised as any contemporary blockbuster. But despite the intergalactic setting, the characters still feel down-to-earth: I found myself rooting for the central couple, sharing in their joys and pains, and hoping that they would end up together. It's the debut feature of US filmmaker Michael Lukk Litwak and I thought it was magnificent.

I saw this film at the London Film Festival and loved it. It stars Zosia Mamet (known to me as Shoshanna from Girls) who's performance has the charisma, charm and depth to carry the film on it's own but is also helped by great performances by Aristotle Athari and the supporting cast. The retro-sci-fi style and inventive filmmaking make it very likeable but it's not just a quirky indie, it's also laugh out loud funny and packs an emotional and political punch at times. It may be set in the future, but it's the observational comedy about dating and life-in-general in todays world that makes it funny. As a fan of both sci-fi and rom-coms this film is made for me but I don't think you have to be a fan of both (of even either) to enjoy it. Your continuing mission should be to boldly go and seek out this film.