Diani & Devine Meet the Apocalypse

I streamed Diani & Devine Meet the Apocalypse after enjoying Gabriel Diani and Etta Devine's first movie, the horror-comedy The Selling which I checked out from the local library. Diani & Devine Meet the Apocalypse delighted audiences at small indie movie festivals and it's easy to see why. It's one of those comical oddity gems, the type that you sometimes find distributed by Fox Searchlight pictures. Too bad this movie hasn't had the same kind of exposure. It begins by roasting the Hollywood star-making machine (maybe why it hasn't been distributed more widely) before it parodies those us-against-them apocalyptic survival flicks. It's all done with a clever script, fine acting and sharp editing. You'll want to watch it more than once to make sure you catch all the jokes.

My husband and I really enjoyed this one! So quirky and funny. Really great writing. Highly recommend!

Why is it, whenever hollywood envisions the apocalypse, it's always people walking around in the desert? As soon as civilization collapses, all Californians head for that long, lonely highway. It's always in Nevada or Arizona. That's where they decide they should be. I mean, what about the Pacific Northwest? Or Montana? Or Florida? Or Appalachia? Someplace with trees? And fish and game? And fresh water?

This movie is probably a good fit for the entertainment crowd, people who love stage shows, singing and dancing numbers, vaudeville, that sort of thing. But for the rest of us it's just an occasionally funny movie that's apparently meant to be an admission that California liberals are pretty weak, for the most part.

Five out of ten, it made me laugh quite a few times.

This movie is such a joy to watch. There's so many aspects of the film that I found both incredibly well done (and high budget) for an indie, and unique towards the overall feel of the story: from the character costumes/sets to the transitions/dialogue and all the quirky bits in between. One thing in particular that I picked up on from the very beginning is that I feel like this movie is a somewhat commentary on millennials since the couple themselves are in their mid-twenties (maybe nearing 30?). Don't get me wrong, it is NOT negative commentary (it might be in a making fun of themselves kind of way) and rather it very much embraces all of the things that millennials do and all of the traits that we share as a generation. I mean there's just so many little things like mannerisms, ways of thinking and a few references included throughout the movie that if you're a millennial too, you'll enjoy more of because you understand or can relate to them and/or you definitely know someone that's like that or would do that same thing that they're doing in the film. I'm not sure if any of this was Diani and Devine's intent (which serious props to them for making this film because of its awesomeness), but it's definitely something that had me smiling and laughing throughout because it made me feel like I was watching myself in one of the many difficult situations that they had to deal with and there's just something so comical and even surreal about that. Apart from that though the film in total is just clever: it's quirky, it's clever, it's sweet. It's not intense, it's actually well written, acted and directed, and there's a lighthearted aspect to something as not-so-lighthearted as the apocalypse from beginning to end which makes it even more fun. I feel like there's even more to say about this movie, but I think you should just watch it and find out for yourself.

I wasn't familiar with Diani & Devine prior to watching this on Amazon and gave it a shot simply because I enjoyed the trailer. But this movie was so much fun. I laughed throughout. If this was a Kickstarter funded indie major props to them! This film was so packed with talent and laughs, I had such a blast watching it. I really hope they make more films, or even a series. They have a great comedic chemistry and have no trouble poking at themselves. The film is really well put together. It is well written, acted, directed, shot and edited. So much heart and polish and comedy. Someone throw some money at these guys so they keep making stuff!