The Girl from Monday

The Girl from Monday embodies maverick filmmaker Hal Hartley's signature use of a calculated aesthetic and frank dialogue. It may surprise die-hard fans with its sexual explicitness and playful tone. Hartley himself calls it a "fake sci-fi movie," but in keeping with his reputation, he has loaded The Girl from Monday with provocative ideas. A creature drops into the ocean from a distant constellation called Monday. She inhabits the body of a stunningly beautiful girl and begins a search for her friend, whom she expects is in trouble. The world, as it exists, is in turmoil. It is after the "great revolution," and prominent executive Jack Bell is not eager to turn her in. He is struggling with his own demons after helping orchestrate the dictatorship of the new city-state and establishing the Human Value Reform Act. Citizens are now a public offering on the stock exchange: each time they have sex and remain unattached, their value increases. Paralleling this future world to our own fills The Girl from Monday with irony. The film's "special effects" consist in the fact that it is sexy, fun, and exhilarating. But don't think you can escape without thinking.— John Cooper (from sundance.org)