Six years after the arrival of extraterrestrial life forms, security in the Infected Zone south of the Mexican-American border is tenuous at best. Magazine photographer Andrew Kaulder is tasked with safely seeing home the owner's daughter Samantha through lawless quarantine areas and slums. Make no mistake, however: this movie is actually an atrophied, ham-handed love story wrapped in a delicious monster movie coating.
The winning aspects of the movie are in the periphery; the resultant subtlety of the low budget lends itself well to Edwards' visual storytelling. Squalor permeates the landscape and the residents near the Infected Zone have a tense desperation about them. Shorelines, jungles, and city streets are littered with reclaimed plane, boat, and truck carcasses serving as a grim reminder of the daily horror these people have been living for years. Even the CG effects, programmed by the director on his laptop, are completely serviceable.
All these aspects would combine to make an effective thriller, but unfortunately the film chooses to focus instead on the interpersonal relationship between Kaulder and Sam. Forcing the viewer to suffer through the generic, cliché ridden dialogue, awkwardly telegraphed jokes, underdeveloped motivation, nonexistent chemistry, and cringe inducing pseudo-philosophical pondering of these characters completely derails any potential emotional investment. I can't emphasize enough how painful it is to watch these two people interact with each other.
Even considering the multitude of characterization faults, I'm looking forward to seeing what Gareth Edwards does next. As a director, the newcomer shows a lot of promise. His steady hand and cinematography are two definite standouts of Monsters, but in the future I'd suggest sticking to scripts from other writers.
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