Netflix uploads so much original and licensed content, it can be hard to navigate and keep up, especially since they don’t advertise a lot of it. That’s why we’re here, to sift through it and hopefully highlight something you didn’t know existed.
The year is 2073. The future is bleak and dystopic. In this particular iteration, Earth’s population is circling 10 billion, forcing government entities to limit the size of families. No children have any siblings. At least they’re not supposed to. There is a branch of the government called the Child Allocation Bureau (CAB) that strictly enforces single-child policy, championed by Nicoletta Cayman (Glenn Close, with makeup leftover from Albert Nobbs?). As an alternative, children are put into cryo freezers and remain there until the future is ready to sustain the population and not strain its resources. This is the world of What Happened To Monday.
Noomi Rapace plays seven identical sisters all named after a day of the week. They live in seclusion from the rest of society. They have lived in hiding for 30 years. And since there are 7 of them, each one of them goes out into the real world one day a week. This rotation is established by their grandfather Terrence Settman (Willem Dafoe) who named each of them after a day of the week. When the sisters are on the outside, they all portray the same identity, with the help of wigs and makeup, Karen Settman. One day, Monday goes missing. Sisters Tuesday through Sunday put their heads together and investigate her disappearance. Cool concept, right?
Debuting at the Locarno Film Festival in 2017, it was released theatrically in Europe and Asia while Netflix purchased the exclusive streaming rights for the US. I remember Netflix barely featuring on their “front page.” But it was more-or-less released to little fanfare. When I read the plot summary, I knew I had to give it a watch. The plot is too intriguing for me not to. And when done right, good science fiction not only makes us ponder the future, but encourages us to reflect on our present.
Well, it would be a stretch to say What Happened to Monday offers us any meaningful insight into our current or future dispositions. As a piece of thrilling, action-packed dystopia-based fiction, it does a good job, especially given it doesn’t look like it had the budget of summer blockbuster fare. As a nuanced piece of science fiction and philosophy? It stumbles around with vague notions of identity, corruption, and family. Shot in Romania on sound stages, the film keeps the viewer engaged, unraveling little bits of the mystery as the narrative progresses. And to be sure, there are plenty of action scenes, many of which include graphic shots to the head, people falling from high places, and even an incineration.
People familiar with Orphan Black will be reminded of the BBC America show as Noomi Rapace tries her hand at playing a set of septuplets, all with different looks and personalities. Not that there is a ton of room to explore what makes each of them unique, but she does her best. Distinctions are largely left to visual signifiers, mainly haircuts and clothing. Each night they sit around the dinner table and hash out what the sister playing Karen went through that day so they can keep up with their communal personality. Of course, there are little things that slip, like poems the doorman shares with Karen. Some of them have heard the poems before, some of them haven’t.
One day, Monday goes missing, throwing the routines of the other 6 into disarray. The movie turns into a chase thriller that navigates a crumbling city brimming with technology of tomorrow. Citizens are equipped with bracelets that project holograms in their hands. Rapace is committed to the role, and she is a big reason why the film doesn’t veer into ludicrousness. She takes it seriously. Are there gaps of logic? Certainly. Like why do these seven sisters have an ambiguously European accent when they were raised by a man who talks like Willem Dafoe? And that’s the least of the issues.
With this one, the few plot holes didn’t bother me too much. The film had good performances, a high concept, and enough fuel to keep the narrative wheels turning. Even with some of the chase sequences being a little long, I found myself invested in what was going to happen next and who was going to live. If you’re looking for some action, a cool plot, and science fiction movie sets that look like they were cobbled together from previous movies, this might be the one for you. It’s an easy and entertaining watch.
What Happened to Monday is streaming on Netflix.
