Review of Monsters (2010) by Guillermo B — 11 Jul 2015

Summary: Gareth Edwards' impressive debut "Monsters" is an interesting, original, and economically-effective sci-fi flick. 84/100 [B+].

Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life form began to appear and half of Mexico was quarantined as an infected zone. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain "the creatures". Our story begins when a US journalist agrees to escort a shaken tourist through the infected zone in Mexico to the safety of the US border.

I really liked this film, maybe because I live in Saltillo, Mexico; my location is part of "the infected zone" and I found it exciting for some reason. Gareth Edwards is one of my new favorite directors; all his films (this one and Godzilla) have something in common, both rely on the human perspective in a devastating situation. Edwards is the only one who knows how to make a film about monsters, without showing too much of the monsters themselves. The movie had a very low budget, but it didn't look crappy at all.

The two main leads have chemistry between each other and I also loved when the girl and some other characters in the film talked in Spanish, the script was very well done. This couple was likable and their relationship ended up well without being too predictable. Overall, it was a very interesting journey. A must see if you're a huge fan of indie movies. The special effects are modest and wisely good, of course they are not mind-blowing and you will not see monsters destroying cities but it is still a pretty great indie flick. [B+].