I greatly liked the first Monsters movie back in 2010. It was a beautiful, thought-provoking film which depicted the USA-Mexico border having been transformed into an “infected zone”, wherein Cthulhu-like
aliens have surfaced and settled after a space probe crashed in the area. This sequel, Monsters: Dark Continent, is set ten years after the events of the
original film. Another “infected zone” has
emerged in the Middle East, and American troops are deployed to fight an
all-out war against the alien monsters.
But aside from the alien monsters, American troops also have to deal
with the typical armed insurgencies in the region (so it ended becoming a
chaotic “three-way war”).
The different setting and premise
of Dark Continent from its
predecessor gave it a very different tone, too.
For one, Dark Continent was
action-packed. It was also apparent from
the cinematography and visual effects that it enjoyed a bigger production
budget. Most importantly, while the
first movie was a thoughtful drama, this sequel is an attempt to be a thoughtful action-drama in the vein of American Sniper. But the political theme allegorized in it is
not as clever as its predecessor’s.
Besides, it felt like such themes are too worn-out at this point. Still, though Dark Continent’s depth suffered from that – the first movie is definitely
more thought-provoking – I still appreciated how the clichéd themes are uniquely
portrayed by the fact that Cthulhu-like aliens are involved in the metaphor.
The beginning and middle acts
were truly engaging, although the weak last act exposed to me how derivative
the movie really is. I was just too
entertained by the previous acts to notice the fact earlier. When the narrative started slowing down, it
gave me time to reflect, and I quickly realized how lacking the movie really
is. I think if it were a bit more
action-heavy till the end, it would have distracted me from its flaws; I would
have liked the movie more.
No comments:
Post a Comment