Mail Order Monster

The story is well written, and the cast are superb in their portrayal of such loveable, recognizable characters. It is a soft sci-fi , kid-friendly film with contemporary, and yet timeless concepts. Although the subject matters and heavy material leans a bit dark toward the end, the director never crosses the line from G/PG entertainment. It can, at times, feel a little too sugary, but in away that is part of "Mail Order Monsters" charm.

The special effects are done nicely, blending graphic novel animation with both practical and CGI on a level that inhances the overall family friendly vibe. The creature design and concept is equal to comic con excellence that can even draw in older sci-fi fans. Overall "Mail Order Monsters" is a great kid flick that will hit home with families and especially preteens into some sci-fi fantasy movies.

I had the opportunity to sit down here late in 2022 to watch the 2018 family movie "Mail Order Monster". And of course I did so, because I had neither heard about the movie nor ever seen it before. So yeah, I opted to give director Paulina Lagudi Ulrich's movie a chance.

Writers Marc Prey and Paulina Lagudi Ulrich did actually manage to put together a wholesome script and storyline here. And there is actually a deeper and more profound meaning and message to the storyline than just a family movie about a girl and her robot. So there is something for viewers of all ages that sit down to watch "Mail Order Monster".

I was familiar with Charisma Carpenter and Josh Hopkins in the movie, but I have to admit that I was really impressed with the performance of leading actress Madison Horcher. She really put on a great performance and a very believable and convincing performance, and she gave the movie so much life and entertainment value.

"Mail Order Monster" turned out to be a rather enjoyable movie. However, it is hardly a movie that warrants more than just a single viewing, as there isn't all that many layers to the storyline. So I doubt that I will ever return to watch "Mail Order Monster" a second time.

My rating of "Mail Order Monster" lands on a six out of ten stars.

This film was wonderfully cast and the story line is second to none. A hybrid between a family film that exploits an important social issue. Its definitely a film you should NOT miss out on watching!

Trite and not even for kids!

Repeated untrue reaction; when the child is told by a parent about the decision of getting married. Trust me that stereotypical reaction is very rare to happen.

Having lost her mother in a tragic car accident 3 years previously, a young girl named "Samantha 'Sam' Pepper" (Madison Horcher) lives with a feeling of guilt that she indirectly caused it by creating a disturbance in the back seat resulting in the fatal crash. As might be expected in someone that young, Sam essentially shut everyone out at the time which then alienates her from her best friend "P. J." (Emma Rayne Lyle) who was also in the car when the fatal crash occurred. Because of this aloofness, P. J. takes it personally and 3 years later has developed into a bully who now delights in tormenting Sam mercilessly in school. For her part, Sam does her best to put up with it. Unfortunately, after one particularly bad day, Sam becomes overwhelmed with emotion and, as a result, she decides to order a monster robot from a magazine to somehow get back at her tormentor. What she doesn't realize, however, is that the robot becomes hardwired into believing that both "P. J." and Roy's new fiancé "Sydney Hart" (Charisma Carpenter) are bad--and this causes problems for everyone involved. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this movie had a decent plot and also featured an outstanding performance by Madison Horcher. The main problem I had with it concerned the rather cheap-looking robot which was simply too ridiculous to be taken seriously. Now, I realize that this was a family movie and things needed to be toned down to a certain extent. But having said that, I thought the director (Paulina Lagudi Ulrich) overdid it to a great degree and I have rated this movie accordingly. Slightly below average.