If I wasn’t already looking forward to seeing A Monster Calls in a couple of weeks, hearing Liam Neeson read the first chapter of the book, definitely seals the deal.
The above video is mostly Neeson reading the first chapter of A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, but it is intercut with scenes from the movie as well. The movie, which is already out in some cities, will be out in wide release on January 6.
I first saw the trailer for A Monster Calls when I was on the press junket for Kubo and the Two Strings (both are Focus Features films). The trailer made me tear up then. I’ve since seen it at least half a dozen times, tearing up every time since then. And, last night, seeing it again, post having seen Rogue One a couple of times, I thought for sure the image of Felicity Jones as Jyn Erso would allow me to get through the trailer without shedding a tear, but no dice. When she says, “And if you need to break things, by God you break them!” it gets me every time. I lost my father to cancer at about the same age as Connor (the boy in the story), and the trailer alone brings all the feels.
Imagine my surprise at the coincidence of coming home from the movies (we saw La La Land which I highly recommend) having seen this trailer and cried again, and finding Liam Neeson in my inbox with this reading. Do yourself a favor and watch and listen to this reading (seriously, I could listen to him read a phone book), and then go see A Monster Calls when it comes to a theater near you. I know I will.
