That’s pretty much what happens to the central characters of “Save Yourselves!,” a pair of delightful Brooklyn hipsters who decide to go cold turkey with their phones exactly at the wrong time, on the day humankind would lose their claim to Planet Earth due to a freaky alien invasion. They are Su (Sunita Mani) and Jack (John Reynolds); a couple so wide-eyed and innocent-looking that you’d think they just grew into their adult bodies accidentally in their own millennial version of “Big.” Su is stuck in a fruitless and abusive job situation. Jack on the other hand indulges in new-age-y pursuits like clinging to a piece of crystal for good luck. And both are a bit too pre-occupied with their touch-screens and browser tabs to the extent where virtual connection has come to mean detachment and disengagement everywhere else, including in their romantic relationship which clearly means a great deal to both. But how exactly could these two “become better people” and be more present for one another?
A week-long off-the-grid escape to the country comes to the couple’s rescue all of a sudden; an impromptu getaway during which the lovebirds agree not to turn on their phones. What they’d instead do is rediscover their intimacy, reconnect with the nature and in Jack’s case, make sourdough starter from scratch; an endeavor that will feel all too relevant to the chronic bakers of the ongoing quarantine days. Unlucky for them, ominously murderous extraterrestrials have been taking over the world and even creeping into the idyllic woods where Su and Jack are vacationing, ignoring messages from their friends and family members.
Perhaps because scaring these endearing individuals with sharp-jawed, bloodsucking and gut-munching creatures would be too cruel, “Save Yourselves!” goes with an adorable alien design. Before we know it, small pouffe-like brutes that look like curled up plush porcupines or cuddly hedgehogs materialize everywhere, looking so cute that one’s natural instinct would be to pick them for a hug instead of running away for dear life. But before the fuzzy fur-balls take over their domain in earnest and “Save Yourselves!” takes an adventurous turn towards a survival narrative, Su and Jack engage with earthly resolves, trying to resurrect what seems to be missing in their relationship, even confessing their deepest embarrassments to each other. Jack says he doesn’t feel manly enough—he knows nothing about plumbing or fishing. Su on the other hand admits she’s been eating her disposable contacts for years after her naive curiosity became a habit.
