Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon

Monalisa's day out in New Orleans is a fantasy trip of light sound and music. There is not much story, as the journey is the plot.

The opening scenes in the Mental Hospital set the stage immediately and raised expectations beyond what was delivered, however watch Monalisa for the experience. For the visual show with accompanying beat and the awakening of an unknown force on a Blood Moon in the south.

There was potential for so much more, Bourbon St never looked so clean and the characters so normal. I assume budget and Covid took their toll.

Great supporting roles from Kate Hudson and son and some other quirky characters.

Not a masterpiece but a koool adventure.

Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon is pretty cool and original movie. I love the premise and the setup. It has a distinct visual style and some interesting music to further differentiate itself.

I enjoyed all of the characters, even the bad ones. It has a good cast giving good performances. Kate Hudson is nearly unrecognizable. And the child actor does a great job playing endearing. I'm normally annoyed by child characters, but he made me root for him.

The reason I didn't rate this higher is because it doesn't seem like it has anywhere to go past the premise and setup. I liked the conclusion but it doesn't feel like it escalates enough through the middle part.

But I think I would watch this a second time and would definitely be interested in a sequel.

(1 viewing, 7/16/2024)

The originality of the idea and its execution is what makes this a fun watch. You won't know where the story is going for at least half of the movie.

I personally would have liked a little more background on Mona Lisa, but it doesn't add or subtract from the plot.

I assumed that the moon would have something to do with her powers, but the story does not dwell too much on the whys and whens.

My favorite part though would have to be Mona's expressions on the flight. That there is some real good acting. I wasn't surprised when I looked Jeon Jong-seo up and found out that she was in "Burning" and "The Call." Both are worth checking out.

I enjoyed this movie to the point I watched it twice on Amazon Prime. I'd watch it thrice if there was a French dub (I wanted to try it). The highlight of the movie is the soundtrack, in my opinion. The licensed tracks are clearly carefully curated to create a nocturnal, electronic-infused vibe. In fact, most of the movie is filmed at night. It has some beautiful shots of New Orleans at night and the film definitely goes for something more stylized than realistic. It's what I would call a traditional movie. 3 acts, beginning, middle and end. No pretentions, no sequel-bait, just a nice little story that explains enough about its characters and world.

The cast does a good job in my opinion. The movie isn't overly gory or gritty so don't go expecting a slasher. It has a cool concept of a girl who is some kind of ESPer (like the psychic kids in Akira). She can control people with her mind similar to some form of hypnosis and after escaping a mental institution she was held in, she goes out and about finding people along her way and a few hijinks ensue. (Don't worry, there are no spoilers here, this is pretty much the premise and synopsis).

It's a good little movie that doesn't last that long, it's roughly 1h40mins. I found it rather curious, endearing, mysterious and weird enough to warrant a second or even a third watch. I wasn't expecting to like it, but somehow I did. This unasuming movie found its way into my heart, it appears. Give it a try, dear IMDB wanderer. I think you might have a good time if you fancy the weird and mysterious.

I liked it. Acting decent, the boy especially was great. Skrein always good value. And it looked pretty good too. I liked the dreamy, trippy lighting and weird angles. The over all message is also a good one. Without giving too much away...treat those around you how you would like to be treated.

For the reviewer who said nothing happens in the first 30 mins and acting was rubbish....what film did you watch? In the first 30 mins a girl uses her powers to escape a mental asylum, then has a run in with drug dealer, then a comic relief cop, then sees a stripper fight + friendship build and use her special powers accordingly through out...what you were doing when all that was happening? And that same reviewer also said there was no story...is that a joke? Every single person in this movie goes on their own journey with their own story having a start and finish until the bittersweet end of the movie.... I genuinely dont know what movie that reviewer watched.

I get it that these kind of lowish budget trippy movies arent for everyone but saying nothing happens or that theres no story is just silly.

Another reviewer compared this movie to those 70s psychedelic movies and I think they are spot on. I mean has anyone seen tommy? Its even comparable to blade runner too in the look and feel of it.

I also think some of ten star reviews are by family of the makers or by people who have never seen a movie before. That aside this is a pretty solid 6/10.

DO NOT listen to the negative reviewers, give it a watch.. and watch until the end to get the most out of the story and journey of characters.