The Reel Review
A young woman living a reclusive life in her childhood home fights back with surprising resiliency when extraterrestrial aliens invade her world, forcing her to confront her traumatic past in the process. Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart) stars in this mashup of sci-fi, horror and psychological thriller.
There is only one line of dialogue uttered in this very unusual film from writer/director Brian Duffield (Spontaneous), which, at times, feels more like a murky, fever dream. Duffield’s decision to keep his protagonist Brynn mostly silent symbolizes her heartbreaking isolation. Is she really experiencing all of this, or is it just a nightmare? Why is she writing letters to her long dead best friend? Why is she alone? And why does everyone in town despise her?
Answers gradually reveal themselves as Dever gives a gripping physical performance. Duffield gets creativity points for his blending of two different storylines, although the recurring flee/catch/kill/flee again routine does get repetitive, with some aliens looking way more realistic and terrifying than others. His film is reminiscent of both the 2016 home invasion thriller Hush and 2018’s A Quiet Place, as well as the now-iconic Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Those who can appreciate the vivid visual imagery, and the double meaning of the title, will appreciate the thought-provoking ending in this different spin on the alien invasion sub-genre.
REEL FACTS
• Kaitlyn Dever’s next film is the Taika Waititi sports-dramedy Next Goal Wins, which hits theaters in November.
• No One Will Save You writer/director Brian Duffield says he opted to make his aliens the more common, slender Greys because “we all grew up with the Greys. I felt like I was missing this movie monster that I loved and no one was giving it to me. I wanted to see this monster back on my screen.”
• No One Will Save You was filmed in the Spring of 2022 in south Louisiana, in Slidell, New Orleans and a couple of parishes south of the city.
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