Review of The Monster (2016) by Kris D — 06 Aug 2017

The Monster is the worst A24 film I've seen. I've should've listened to the warning on the cover; "From The Writer and Director of The Strangers". Bryan Bertino does not know how to write characters and motives. The 13 year old actor talks like a six year old, and there was one flashback that showed how bad of an actor she can be. The flashbacks seemed to be edited randomly into the story and don't really connect to the current situation. The monster would do something to scare the audience but they have no logical reason except to have a pointless jumpscare just like the strangers in The Strangers. I was so disappointed that the monster doesn't really do much in his screen time, and his design (unless in shadows) is a little dull because a demonic looking hound has been done before. This film could've been as bad as The Strangers, but there were a few improvements to Bryan's filmmaking. The cinematography is way better than before, the practical effects on the monster and wounds are top notch for a low budget, the actors weren't as bad, and Bryan actually properly set up a fitting tone and atmosphere to the film. The Monster is a bad horror film, but it's still an improvement.

4.5/10.