The Monster (2016)

Director: Bryan Bertino
Stars: Zoe Kazan, Ella Ballentine, Aaron Douglas
Runtime: 91 minutes

Performances: 6/10
Screenplay: 2/10
Special Effects: N.A.
Costumes/Makeup: 7/10
Editing: 6/10
Cinematography: 7/10
Score/Soundtrack: 6/10

Verdict: Much like in Stephen King’s “Cujo”, “The Monster” follows Kathy and her daughter Lizzy as they are trapped in their car and surrounded by a mysterious, bloodthirsty creature.

Horror films set in confined locations are not easy to make, and this movie perfectly illustrates why. For such a movie to work, moviegoers have to feel what the characters are feeling, which is usually translated to them with the use of tense and realistic filmmaking. And despite setting an atmosphere that very much checked both these criteria, the movie fails to deliver them, and this is mainly due to very unconvincing performances by Zoe Kazan and Ella Ballentine, as well as an incredibly poorly written script that followed the same formula as any cliché horror flick (in other words disposable characters, irrational character decisions, or a general logic that doesn’t make sense whatsoever). But what killed any hint of tension left was the decision to frequently include unnecessary flashbacks that completely took me out of the flick, without really contributing to the story or development of the two main characters.

“The Monster”, in the end, was a very disappointing film disguised as a good one, and will most probably dissatisfy people looking for a fun horror flick to watch with friends as much as individuals eyeing a decently made horror indie.

Final Grade: 4/10