Monster
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Movie Reviews of Monster
Movie Review: The True Story of the US's First Female Serial Killer
Summary: 5 Stars
"Monster" is one of the most talked about films of 2003, not just because of Charlize Theron's groundbreaking performance. This is one of the most daring films released that year. It desplicts the life of the first female serial killer in US history, Aileen Wuournos. It explores the time between Wuournos moved to Florida to her meeting girlfriend Selby to her making her first killing to the conclusion. The brilliant plot digs deeper than just a woman who kills. It shows how she became so angry of life, influencing her murders. Contrary to popular belief, the crew assures that they do not symphathize her murders. The chain of events has the level of direct impact to keep audiences on the edge of their seats. The powerful theme never fades for a moment throughout the film.Charlize Theron's performance as Aileen Wuournos is one of the best in many years. Film critic Leonard Maltin once said that this is the best performance in cinema history. He may be correct. There was never a year that any actress was as well-deserving of every Best Actress award in existance, including the Oscar and the Golden Globe. Such acting quality goes beyond gaining thirty pounds and abandoning the Hollywood glamour for a while. She almost literally became Wuournos. Her facial expressions, her physical mannerisms, her vocal style, and her presence resemble the real-life Wuournos. Therefore, she clearly researched her role thoroughly. Theron never loses that presence for a moment.
Christina Ricci's underrated performance as Wuournos's girlfriend Selby is wonderful. Her character's compassion and her anger is well expressed in the film. Thought the role is not as demanding as Theron's, she still proves that she is a rare young talent. All other actors present themselves wonderfully.
The physical surroundings, including the buildings and the make-up, greatly add to the gloomy film theme. It wondefully desplicts Aileen Wuournos's extension to her life. The make-up team wonderfully transformed Charlize Theron's face and skin into Wuournos's, making Theron resemble her much closer. Such accomplishment also offers a deeper to Wuournos's painful past.
"Monster" is an unforgettable experience for its audiences. It is sure to please them for a long time. The special features are great, interesting pieces that explore the film's production. Those wanting to learn more about Aileen Wuournos should also read the book "Deep Ends: The Pursuit, Conviction, And Execution of Female Serial Killer Aileen Wuournos, the Damsel of Death" written by Michael Reynolds.
Movie Review: Astounding, all the hype is true
Summary: 5 Stars
I was concerned that this film would not live up to all its hype. I had nothing to be concerned about, it exceeded my already high expectations, by quite a bit. Theron is not that great in first couple of scenes and you're getting used to the make-up, but about 20-30 minutes into it, it's Wuornos you're watching. The story grabs your attention immediately and keeps it through the end. While I'm not sure it's the performance of the century as many have stated, it's easily the best in the last 5 years or so, and certainly for this year. Amazing. I thought Ricci was a little miscast and her character and performance I thought added little to the film when in fact she is an important character. I just thought Ricci was sleepwalking through it, and she looked 18 years old or so, which was way off from real life. Wuornos' real life Selby, a woman named Tyria, was in her late 20's and far from some misguided confused waif who just left home. Anyway, I thought Ricci was all wrong and added some element to the film that was not true to the real story.Obviously, this film is not for everyone. Prostitution, serial murdering, and lesbians are not everyon'e idea of what makes a good movie. This is a very tough movie to watch, and there is no happy ending. Even worse for some, no real resolution for how one should feel about Wuornos is provided. I thought the script and direction were excellent and let you draw your own conclusions. Wuornos at least starts off pitiful and likeable. When you are homeless and make your living hooking on major freeways, you are at the end of the line. The film does not whitewash her meager and hideous existence at the start of the film, or her desperate love for Ricci, the only real love she has ever had. The film, however, ends with Wuornos, in fact, being a heartless and merciless killer, no doubt about it. What may frustrate some viewers but what I think made it so good is that, Wuornos' case cannot be placed into that of black and white. Neither is she 100% victim nor 100% victimizer. Some of her actions are explanable, some are not. It's not an easy film to watch, not at all, but I think it handled the complexity of the Wuornos case quite well. Also, I live within minutes of the Last Resort and most of where Wuornos worked, lived, and killed. The shots are authentic and I think add to the movie.
This is easily the performance of the year. If you can handle disturbing subject matter with some fairly graphic violence and a lesbian sex scene, then see the movie.
Movie Review: Terrifying and Heartwrenching
Summary: 5 Stars
Having seen the HBO specials on the real life Aileen, and hearing all about how Charliz Theron transformed herself to play the part to Oscar's applaudes, I was anxious to see this film.
I was riveted to my place, absolutely spellbound by Theron's performance. She so drowned herself in this character that she literally had "breakdown moments" on the set during filming (see this on the featurette with great behind the scenes coverage with director and costars) She notes that every film has their 2 or 3 "hard" scenes to film, but this entire picture was a hard scene.
The knowledge that it's based on a true story makes you pay more attention to the details, to the history behind Aileen's sad life the reasons she hated men, the disdain she held for her family, in particular her dad.
Christina Ricci's portrayal of lesbian lover, Selby Wall, is wonderful, however, it bothered me to see how she provided the straw that broke the camel's back with Aileen. Had Selby been self-sufficient and truly loved Aileen, she would not have demanded so much money for silly things; at one point in the film she comes home from an afternoon of drinking in the bar, loaded with "groceries" that she said they needed, however, Aileens checks the packages and pulls out a stuffed animal!
She wanted to travel, go to Fun World - an amusement park, and basically live off of Aileen's money. Selby was childish and immature, had only half a conscience, and this is the shame of the story, since Aileen looked to her as the savior that rescued her from suicide, and gave her something to dream of and hope for...a better, normal life. In the end, Selby betrays Aileen, the killer takes full blame for her brutal actions and Selby disappears free and clear of any blame.
The murder scenes, in particular one that is completely senseless and gut-wrenching, are enough to make you lose sleep at night. This film haunted me for some time after viewing it, and though my heart went out to the abused and lost child that once was Aileen Wouronos, I cannot agree that her messed up early life was the reason for her choice of prostitution and murder as a way of living. Her heartbreaking childhood couldn't be changed, but the roads she took in later years led to deeper trouble, and ultimately to her execution in prison in October, 2002.
The true sadness of this woman's life and death is that had the right people reached out to her, things could have been better.
Movie Review: A riveting and startling piece of filmmaking
Summary: 5 Stars
This MONSTER is a monster of a movie in everything that the title entails. A tragic and sad story of a woman beaten down by the horrible turn of events that happen in her life (especially in her childhood). Aileen Wournos, who was called the first woman serial killer who was executed thru lethal injection on October 9, 2002 in Florida had life messed up and confused from the time that she was 13, when she became pregnant and forced I believe to live out on her own.Along the way she encountered everything that was bad and found early on that the only way to survive was to prostitue herself for money. One day she walks into a seedy bar and meets Selby a young lesbian girl who is somewhat confused with her sexuality (not completely out of the closet) they take a liking to each other and soon enough become lovers. Aileen who was fed up with the way her life was going wanted no longer to continue hooking but had her johns believe that she was and ended up killing seven men while stealing their wallets and their cars.
Men represented everything that had gone wrong with her life and so she rebelled against them and loathed them with a passion. Therefore she had no remorse about killing them one by one since they were all dogs to begin with. Charlize Theron who gave an amazing Oscar winning performance paints a harrowing and chilling portrayal of the confused and desperate Wournos trying to keep herself in the clear and from getting caught from the police. This movie is very intense and I think its director Patty Jenkins who also wrote the script did an excellent job helming this film. Christina Ricci who plays Selby her lover and is also on the run with her does a very good job as well, however if for what is worth what makes people want to see this movie is without a doubt Theron's brilliant performance. Her transformation physical and emotional was unbeliveable. Charlize Theron who is I believe one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood pull all the stops in making her character look identical to the real Aileen Wournos. Theron gained 30 pounds, colored her hair to dirty blond had her face practically redone with a lot of freckles and even had prosthetics done on her teeth. I strongly believe that both Christina Ricci and writer/director Patty Jenkins should of both won oscars for their great work. This film is definately a must see and I'm certainly going to add this movie to my collection when is release on DVD. A riveting and startling piece of filmmaking from beginning to end.
Movie Review: A Different Kind of Love Story
Summary: 5 Stars
While IMHO "Monster" is an absolutely amazing film, it obviously is not going to be everyone's cup of tea. But the only reasons for criticism are writer/director Patty Jenkins' exploitation of a real-life situation and the perception that serial killer Aileen is portrayed as more of a victim that those she murdered. While there is some logic to those arguments, I think Jenkins actually showed considerable restraint. Exploitation and character identification are inevitable in this type of story. It is more a question of degree-if you compare this to 1990's tearjerker "Too Young to Die" (starring Juliette Lewis in an almost identical story), Jenkins comes off as a model of objectivity and distanced perspective.
What is most unique and compelling about "Monster" is that it is much more a love story than a thriller or a crime drama. The two main love scenes are absolutely riveting, with intensity levels higher than you are likely to find in any other film. "Tide Is High" and "Crimson and Clover" will never sound the same.
One thing that works unexpectedly well is the incredible contrast between the two characters. Jenkins works hard to emphasize this, with camera shots that emphasize the physical size differences coupled with dialogue and behaviors that emphasize the contrasting personalities of this odd pair. Having Scott Wilson play the last murder victim is a homage to an earlier "Mutt and Jeff" pair of murderers, as he played Robert Blake's "In Cold Blood" sidekick.
Although most of the critical acclaim has gone to Theron for her portrayal of Aileen, I think that a lot of the credit for Theron's masterful performance should go to Ricci's subtle and nuanced portrayal of Selby. Watch Ricci's eyes in all her reaction shots, it is as close to acting for the camera perfection as you are likely to ever see.
If you really enjoyed Theron's incredible transformation from her typical hot starlet to this gritty prostitute role, then check out Catherine Deneuve in "Repulsion" (1965) and "Belle de jour" (1967). While not as physically extreme as Theron's transformation, Deneuve's two characters are equally hard to reconcile as being played by the same actress. Yet another acting for the camera marvel, as wardrobe, makeup, and hair-styling combine with behaviors and speech to effect an amazing range between two characters played by the same actress.
Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.