A charming love story

Rating: 8/10 (22 February 2004)

I am of course lying. This movie is about as charming as a cockroach in your pudding cup. Monster is a tale of abuse, addiction, murder and codependent lesbian love. I don't think your mother would approve of this movie.
So, what does Mom know? Monster is not a happy movie; there is no uplifting message buried in this screenplay. In Monster, the downtrodden stay down, the villains don't always get their comeuppance and innocence is no protection against evil. You won't leave the theater with a warm glow or a spring in your step but you won't leave feeling like you wasted $9, either. Monster tells a gritty, harsh, depressing and dark story. Monster also happens to be a very good movie.
Monster's central character is both hero and villain. Into her life comes the one thing that can make it worth living, again: love. Sadly, our hero-villain's life has already twisted her beyond repair and she chooses some rather unorthodox methods of keeping her new affair from falling apart. I won't waste many more words describing this movie's content. Suffice it to say that love really can make people do strange things.
I found Monster to be deeply moving. Most screenplays that involve homosexuality tend to caricature either the relationship or its participants. I think that Monster handled the issue very well with both Aileen and Selby displaying real human emotions and reactions. In the early stages of Aileen's relationship with Selby, the passion is intense and easily felt by the audience. Charlize Theron delivers an astounding performance that leaves no room for doubt about her skill as an actress and Christina Ricci's Selby is very believable as the selfish insecure center of Aileen's new life. Both performances are suitably powerful. As with other films of its type, I do think Monster falls into the trap of trying to make the main character more sympathetic than she deserves but it's nearly impossible to not feel empathy for Aileen.
If for no other reason, I recommend Monster because it is unlike most other movies you will see. The movie industry cranks out a lot of raw footage of film every year but most of it falls easily into one of the handful of formulae we are used to seeing. Monster is not entirely immune to this formulaic style of moviemaking but enough of it is uniquely Monster that you won't find yourself thinking, "I've seen this movie a dozen times already." I think that's a Very Good Thing.
Monster: 8/10