Monsters: Dark Continent (2014)

Sex :
Violence :
Director Tom Green
Writers Tom Green, Jay Basu
Starring Johnny Harris, Sam Keeley, Joe Dempsie, Kyle Soller, Nicholas Pinnock, Parker Sawyers
Genre Monster
Tagline Fear has evolved
Country
Horror Movie Review - Monsters: Dark Continent (2014)

Review

"Why am I here? What am I doing here?" - Noah Frater

The monster invasion has spread to the Middle East, due to fragments of the satellite having crashed there carrying spores I guess. U.S troops are naturally deployed to fight the alien menace as well as combat local insurgents who don't agree with their presence. Thrown into the maelstrom are four friends from Detroit who are serving their first foreign tour of duty as members of team "tiger shark".

Initially the newcomers have their war dreams becoming reality, a tough staff sergeant, patrolling local streets where both civilians and insurgents lurk, and generally being all they can be. They get to kill their first monster as well, so all that time on the PS4 hasn't been wasted. This changes when they are tasked with going into back Country to rescue a group of soldiers stranded in the desert and getting them safely to an extraction point. Only problem is the rescue mission is going deep into monster and insurgent territory and staff sergeant Frater might have a few Roos loose in the top paddock.

Back in 2010 Monsters was a surprise hit for director Gareth Edwards who proved with the movie just what you could do with a limited budget. We even gave the movie a 9/10 rating right here as we grooved to Edwards' beat. Naturally a sequel was going to come and Brit director Tom Green was selected as the dude to make the next movie in what could be a franchise happen. What's surprising, and being missed by a whole bunch of Reviewers who aren't understanding what they are viewing, is Green not only continues with Edwards' themes but builds on those themes in an exploration of U.S failings in various Middle East conflicts. The question remains, who or what are the monsters, only this time that question takes place in the context of U.S military policy.

Okay lets shine a light on the elephant in the room, Dark Continent is a multi-layered examination of conflict in the modern age, examining who is called to duty, what they need to become to do that duty, oh and honking big monsters that have as yet undefined purposes. The cut of the movie I caught ran just over 2 hours and I have to say could have been trimmed of 30 odd minutes without too much damage being done to the narrative flow. Unfortunately for director Green a lot of viewers are not going to be able to sit through a long day's journey into night outing that doesn't have action going down every five minutes to break the gradually build toward the total insanity of the final block of the movie. Equally imposing for the modern audience is Green isn't neon signposting anything, you are going to have to concentrate to get the themes being sent your way in this one. So yeah Dark Continent is aimed squarely at an adult audience used to dramatic outings that don't treat the audience as imbeciles. If Transformers is your thing then you are in the wrong movie, however if flicks like Session 9 drive your boat then dig on in folks.

Dark Continent has any number of themes working which raises the movie above general run of the mill monster fare. Detroit, the home town of our four new recruits, is shown to be in an even worse condition than the Middle East City the boys arrive in that is under attack by both monsters and insurgents. To paraphrase Swan from The Warriors, "this is what we fought all night to get back to"? At least someone is making a profit from the monsters in Detroit via a new take on dog fights. The urban decay of the City and lack of opportunities for the young people is palpable as Director Green spends some time showing us the environs. Our recruits have nothing to lose given the general decay they have grown up in.

Ever since the Vietnam War U.S military doctrine seems to be shock and awe without regard to controlling territory or indeed wiping out a known enemy. Throughout Dark Continent Director Green highlights U.S surveillance of monster herds apparently roaming free and unmolested in the Countryside with the odd incursion into urban areas drawing U.S firepower. Whether or not I'm reading too much into this hovers over the review, but for mine Green is pointing out the rather ludicrous U.S military policy and the fact that it's achieving the sum total of squat. Naturally U.S reviewers aren't letting an uppity Brit comment on their Country's military policy without band wagoning against the movie down main street U.S.A.

And naturally Dark Continent highlights how war turns the best of us into monsters, part and parcel of the game the movie reminds us in an echo from past war movies including Apocalypse Now. This is the one core theme running through both this movie and the previous one; exactly who or what are the monsters?

Green touches bases with a few nice subtle scenes that had me smiling like a Liberal party Senator slashing an environmental budget. One of the Detroit dudes takes time out of his busy schedule of developing JD traits to shot at painted targets of monsters, a scene reflected late in the movie when a group of young Arab kids are doing the exact same thing. Similarly the wife of the black guy gives birth to a son, and the guy is out of there quick stick to party with his mate, not getting the situation or his wife's statement that one day she simply won't be there when he returns.

As stated above Monsters: Dark Continent is a multi-textured outing that isn't simply showing the monsters and going boo. There are attempts being made here to be subversive and to shine a light onto the absurdities of society, something all good horror movies should attempt to do. The movie takes a tad long to roll these ideas out but it does make for a richly textured viewing experience in the here and now style of film making. I reiterate if after instant gratification and neon sign posted themes then check out a Michael Bay movie instead, you aren't going to enjoy this one as it makes you think.

As in the first movie the monsters are presented almost as a surreal backdrop to the drama being displayed in the foreground. There's an ethereal quality to even the leviathans that brings some stunning beauty and grandeur to some scenes in the movie. Added bonus with Dark Continent is the smaller antelope like alien creatures that seem to be stuck on warp factor nine as they pervade the movie with seemingly aimless running. I was impressed with the monsters that continue to be utterly fascinating. Green continues the less is more mandate of Monsters to excellent effect.

I was impressed with Green's direction that goes from kinetic in your face action to wide angle panoramic shots as the script demands. The Director is getting the best out of his cast, who quickly develop their own personalities and motivations. I'm looking forward to seeing what he does next.

Out of room here so going to close with a note that the acting is overall of a high standard. Okay it's a bit of a chore getting through the first block of this movie, while you are trying to determine just exactly what you are watching, but at some stage the whole notion kicks in and you will be aware that you are in the midst of a serious flick that doesn't talk down to you. While we can all dig some popcorn cinema, hell it's pretty much what this site covers, there is still room for adult orientated dramas that dare to take that extra step beyond the fodder being thrown at the short attention span modern teens. If after a serious multi textured movie that seeks to shine a light then dial into Monsters: Dark Continent, else stay with the Scream inspired increasingly low brow cookie cutters Boredwood is spewing forth month in month out. Director Green is going epic with this movie, I for one applaud him for it.

ScaryMinds Rates this movie as ...

  Who are the real monsters?