Monsters
Short description
Monsters is a British science fiction drama set six years after a NASA probe returning with samples of possible extraterrestrial life crashed over Central America. Large parts of Mexico have since been placed under quarantine as an infected zone, where alien creatures have taken hold and the American and Mexican militaries struggle to keep them contained. A photojournalist is asked to escort a shaken young woman through the zone to the safety of the United States border, and the two must find their way across a landscape that is both heavily militarised and inhabited by the creatures.
The film was directed and written by Gareth Edwards, produced by James Richardson and Allan Niblo, and stars Scoot McNairy as Andrew Kaulder and Whitney Able as Samantha Wynden. It was released in 2010 and runs 94 minutes. It sits second in Edwards's directing career, following End Day and preceding Godzilla, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Creator and Jurassic World Rebirth.
Made for a modest budget and taking around 4 million dollars worldwide, the film drew a mixed but generally positive response. On IMDb it holds 6.3 out of 10 from about 102,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.2 out of 10 from roughly 1,800 votes. A critics' rating of 6.7 out of 10 from 160 reviews places it slightly above those audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The entire work on the film was a continuous improvisation. The main characters only knew the general outline of what would happen in each specific scene. They simply interacted with each other and with the rest of the creative team, many of whom were not even professional actors.
- When a city recently devastated by a hurricane was found, Gareth Edwards doubted the correctness of his decision to film in the wake of the tragedy, but he instantly made the decision after being told that the filming, on the contrary, would be beneficial for the city, as it would bring at least some money into the budget to help those affected.
- According to the director, the film was shot over eight months by a team of six people traveling around South America in a minivan.
- The ruins and devastated city were filmed in a real city destroyed by a hurricane. To capture the aftermath of disasters, the director followed TV news – looking for reports of natural disasters.
- The film was shot on a SONY EX-3 camera, with an adapter for Nikon lenses.
- The film was shot entirely on location, and often no one even bothered to obtain permission to do so. People who just happened to be in the right place at the time were cast in minor roles.
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