It’s 1987, and teenager Oliver (Max Harwood, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie) has grown up living a sheltered life—his parents had isolated him from the rest of the world since he was born, and he has never had any friends. Oliver’s father passed away a while back, and his mother had an unfortunate “accident” about a year ago, leaving him lonely and alone. After the accident, Oliver spent some time in a psychiatric facility to verify that he was OK to live on his own, and was just recently released back to his mother’s old house in the small town of Hubris. However, he still has a difficult time accepting his situation. Every morning he makes breakfast for him and his mother, and every afternoon he watches her favorite TV show, Alf, so that he can recap the episode to her at her grave.
Psychiatrist Julius (Evan Ross) believes Oliver is a lost cause, and had argued against his release from the facility, but social worker Margot (Ashley Benson) is more encouraging towards Oliver and has faith in him. Together they make regular checkups to ensure Oliver is doing OK, but give him the ultimatum that he must dig up and prove he has made a friend by the end of the month, Halloween, in order to continue living on his own. After attempting and failing to make small talk with Chloe (Tallulah Haddon), a young woman he sees on a bench by the water, Oliver decides to take the ultimatum literally. While visiting his mother’s grave, he hears about a new body behind buried, a young man named Mitch (Hero Fiennes Tiffin) who recently died in a car accident, and literally digs himself up a new friend, and takes the corpse home for his own version of Weekend at Bernie’s. But when he hears that more bodies have arrived from a plane crash, he decides to give himself a whole makeshift family—with the new corpses serving as his parents Frank (Ben Miller) & Susanne (Susan Wokoma), little sister Mel (Zenobia Williams), and even a family dog. However, after he takes a family photo, the corpses seem to magically come back to life as zombies, who can talk and interact with him. Is he just imagining all of this, or is this really happening?! This boy who was once lonely and alone now has an entire support system. Oliver’s new friend and family start helping him address and fix the things that are wrong in his life, helping him to gain the confidence he needs to take on bullies, talk to the girl he likes, and more. Meanwhile, Julius is suspicious that something odd is going on at Oliver’s home, and is determined to prove it and get Oliver committed.
The Loneliest Boy in the World is a quirky and entertaining horror/dark comedy, though it’s not really horror in the sense of scary, but rather in the blood and gore department—the zombies are constantly falling apart, losing limbs or other pieces of their bodies and having to staple themselves back together. The film has a very stylized look, almost feeling like the 50’s or 60’s at times, even though it is set in 1987. But this bright, colorful look helps to sell some of the more over-the-top, campy moments—such as when the nature of Oliver’s mother’s “accident” is revealed. In addition to the Oliver’s more deadpan humor, and the physical comedy with the zombies, there’s also the comedic duo of the dimwitted gravediggers, Doug (Alex Murphy) & Elliott (Hammed Animashaun), who always have some crazy new venture they’re up to, and the trio of bullies and their one-liners as they harass Oliver.
The film is oddly upbeat and inspirational, despite being about a lonely boy who resorts to digging up bodies to make friends. Max Harwood really shines in the role of Oliver, who seems to find nothing unusual about his very unusual situation. There is this nice innocence to Oliver, who’s experiencing the world for the first time. When bullies call him names or harass him, he just seems to brush it off. But thanks to his new undead friends, he starts to grow and change, learning to stand up for himself, finally dealing with his grief. It takes the undead to help him start actually living his life.
Well Go’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds very good. As mentioned before, the film has this very colorful, stylized look, which is captured beautifully by the Blu-ray representation. Whether it’s the over-saturated flashbacks of Oliver and his mom sitting outside in the sun, the bright pink of the house interior, or the darker scenes in the graveyard, the video is always clean and clear with a solid level of detail. The audio track provides clear dialogue as well as an excellent immersive experience—whether it’s the sounds of birds chirping, the echo of Julius’ ultimatum ringing in Oliver’s head, the sound of thunder overhead, etc. The film also has a fantastic soundtrack, mixing in some great 70’s and 80’s songs. I’m never that guy to notice or point out anachronisms in films, but at one point Oliver is playing Go West’s “King of Wishful Thinking” on the piano, which wasn’t released until 3 years after the film takes place. However, I’m a big fan of the song, and star Max Harwood does an excellent cover of it for the film’s credits.
Well Go’s Blu-ray release is a bit barebones, but does include a five-minute behind-the-scenes featurette with the cast, as well as the film’s trailer, and some previews for three other Well Go releases. The disc comes packed in a locking HD keepcase, and doesn’t include a digital copy. Our review copy did not include a slipcover.
What’s Included:
Film: (1:30:04)
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Blu-ray:
- 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
- Audio: English DTS-HDMA 5.1, English Stereo
- Subtitles: English
Extras:
- Behind the Scenes (5:07)
The cast talks about what drew them to the film, how they prepared for their roles, working on a horror-comedy, what makes a good friend, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with stars Max Harwood (“Oliver”), Hero Fiennes (“Mitch”), Zenobia Williams (“Mel”), Tallulah Haddon (“Chloe”), Alex Murphy (“Doug”), Ben Miller (“Frank”) & Susan Wokoma (“Susanne”). - Trailer (2:20)
- Previews
- Alienoid (2:31)
- Unwelcome (2:19)
- The Witch 2: The Other One (1:44)
Final Thoughts:
The Loneliest Boy in the World is an entertaining film that often plays a completely ridiculous premise very straightforward for laughs. And despite being about zombies, it’s also somewhat heartwarming at times. Max Harwood is great in the lead role, making Oliver this charming oddball you want to root for, and he is surrounded by a fun supporting cast of quirky characters. Well Go’s Blu-ray release provides solid video and audio, but is a bit light on the bonus material. That said, the film is worth checking out for fans of Harwood, or anyone looking for a different take on the zombie comedy—one that is less about eating brains and more about finding family, love and friendship.
The Loneliest Boy in the World
$14.99 (as of November 24, 2024 09:50 GMT -05:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
The Loneliest Boy in the World
$13.99 (as of November 24, 2024 09:50 GMT -05:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
The Loneliest Boy in the World
$3.99 (as of November 24, 2024 09:50 GMT -05:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
