Monsters: Review By kiion

For a movie production that had a filmmaking team that consisted of only seven primary crew members during the shooting and editing processes, 'Monsters' would surprise many in believing it is a film that deserves nothing more than a destiny of being found in shop bargain bins. However with 'Monsters' this is not the case. Although it is not a perfect movie in any case, it does enough that it will inevitably please some people and therefore will garner enough of an audience to not go down this route. It is a fully watchable and semi enjoyable movie that shows that for a filmmaking vision to be made, their is no real need for big budgets and massive production crews.

Gareth Edwards has done wonders with the production of this movie, proving a lot of things in the process. Within this production he has kept to a very small budget for an ambitious project, working out the ways of allowing this movie to be the max that it can be. This shows that he is fully competent in many aspects of the production process taking on many duties himself (Director, Story-boarder and Special Effects artist being some of the duties that he undertakes). The director was also the one who came up with the narrative and way of shooting this movie. All of these go together to show that Gareth Edwards is one of the most promising people to appear in the film industry in the last couple of years.

The plot of this movie begins where most alien invasion movies end. The invaders have succeeded in populating some of America. Having been here six years, means for the fact that humanity has adjusted to them being there and get on with their lives. The only rule that they follow with regards the residents is to keep out of their way and never enter the infected zone, the area of land that is found between Mexico and the United States. Within this setting the narrative follows two people who live in this world. Andrew Kaulder is a freelance photographer, that makes his living through taking photos of the creatures and any of the carnage that they have caused. Through selling these photographs to newspapers, contacts have been made with the editors. After an alien attack, one such editors daughter has become stranded across the border. In hope of getting his daughter home safely, the editor has asked Kaulder to bring her back. When Andrew agrees they begin the trip back, the film follows their journey. After many different set backs occurring with the principle cast, tension leads to their relationship of these two characters altering throughout the duration. A common storyline thread that is found in many films, having the setting how it is, and the way that the director uses fresh ideas to cause different approaches to what audience members are used to, allows this movie to appear new and unlike anything that has come before.

With this film only having two primary cast members, Scott McNairy and Whitney Able, a lot of the film's pressure is sure to fall on their shoulders in the fact that they must carry the film's narrative correctly. They both deal with this pressure well throughout, and portray their respective characters strongly. The way that the director has given the roles to a true life couple, enables true chemistry to be apparent between them. The decision therefore, helps the chemistry to be believable to audience members and as such allows for a feeling for viewers to relate to. A brave decision by the director, but one that pays off.

Another key decision that can be deemed as brave is that of not employing working extras and therefore relying on using only the people that are there during the shoots. To make this work, a decision must have been made to not have a fully formed script to be written before taking in footage. Instead, the director uses improvisation from all parties, and this can be seemed as a more risky venture. Like the other key decision though it is one that pays off, as it allows the film to come across more organic. Having only two primary characters also allows for sole concentration to be directed at them, keeping the narrative a more closely met tale instead of a confusing and un-needed more complicated structure.

For special effects that are added at the end of the production process by the director himself in his own bedroom, can be seen as another risky way of producing a movie. Luckily however, Edwards is also highly talented at creating effects and perfectly skilled at developing them to the required standard that is needed within this film. The monsters, when shown, always seem to pose real threat, but at the same time they seek compassion from the audience. It possibly could have aided the movie if perhaps there was more design to these creatures, but the ones that are shown do the required job to a standard that does not allow itself to take away focus from the overall production.

'Monsters' is a fully entertaining movie, with the right level of tension, excitement and drama found throughout. With a completely believable coupe of lead actors, audience members are invited to draw real attachment to the narrative. The director has shown true risks with some of the decision that are found within this movie, but these risks seem beneficial to the overall product. A welcome and fresh style on the alien invasion sub genre of film, works well throughout, and although it is in no way perfect, it is a strong movie that carries with it many positive attributes.