Colossal

If there was an award for the strangest, most difficult film of the year to categorize, I'd hand out the trophy right now to the smart, funny, powerful and entertaining COLOSSAL.

Anne Hathaway is excellent as Gloria, a jobless woman who would rather hang with her friends than search for work. Her drinking finally becomes too much for her boyfriend Tim, played by Dan Stevens (Beauty and the Beast, Downton Abbey) and he throws her out of his apartment.

Forced to move back to her parents empty home where she grew up, Gloria meets old friends & lovers, including bar owner Oscar (Jason Sudeikis, terrific in a straight dramatic role) and his friend Joel, very well played by Austin Stowell (Whiplash, Bridge of Spies).

Pretty straight relationship drama, right?

OK, stick with me....

At the same time, a giant Godzilla style monster begins to terrify and destroy South Korea, in full-on big-scale special effects sequences. It's as if a science fiction movie wanders in and takes over the screen.

Things take an even stranger turn when Gloria begins to notice direct connections between herself and the huge monster in Asia.

Where the film goes from that point in the film is surprising, funny, at times dramatic and always enjoyable.

I LOVE movies that surprise you and get bored quickly when a film never strays from the predictable. I never had any idea where this one was going from beginning to end, but it made me laugh a lot, while also portraying some serious topics as effectively as any relationship drama in recent memory.

Hathaway is very good, playing against type and doing it well. Her scenes with Stowell carry a lot of unspoken power, a tribute to them both and its the best I've seen Sudeikis on film.

Spanish Writer/Director Nacho Vigalondo is one to watch.

I know this one sounds strange, straddling the line between sci-fi and drama enough to alienate both audiences.

Do yourself a favor and check it out.

HUGE on talent, originality and laughs, it gets a COLOSSAL A.