Monsters and Men | Film Review

Hey Guys x

I remember hearing about this film months ago, but then I stopped hearing about it, and kind of forgot that it existed. When I saw it come on one of the Sky Cinema channels, I recognised the name and decided to watch it.

The incident of an unarmed black man being shot dead by the police causes ripple effects within a neighbourhood in New York - particularly changing the lives of three individuals.

The first thing that struck me about the film was the way that the first scene was shot. It's a scene of a man in a car. He is centre frame and the camera doesn't move, he is the complete main focus. Because of this, you're invested in his story before you even know who he is.

This is just one of the reasons that you get engrossed in the movie so quickly. The two main characters that you meet first are such interesting, complex characters that you want to know how everything ends for them as soon as you meet them.

The film shows a story that has been made before (in films such as Fruitvale Station, etc.) from the point of view of people that you don't usually hear from, a policeman and a witness. This changes the angle of the situation completely and makes the film really original.

However, the timing between the three stories felt off. The audience is ripped away from a character just as they start to become truly invested in their story. As a result of this, I found that I didn't care about the last character at all.

One of the main problems with this, is that the story doesn't circle back. When you're done with the other characters, you never really see them again, which is annoying more than anything else.

Having said that, the tone of the film was extremely fitting for the subject matter - it is extremely heavy. It gives you a lot to think about, and a lot of characters to juggle.

Overall, this is a movie with an important message and a very poignant ending, watch it if you get the chance.

6.5/10

Lou