A friend of mine recently recommended Monsters to me, explaining that it was an alien movie that looks like it was made by Sofia Coppola, (one of my faves). Just to be clear is is not a Coppola film. Just a little indie written and directed by Gareth Edwards and a couple of undiscovered actors. So, of course I hunted it down on Netflix. Here’s the plot from Netflix:
Six years after aliens invaded Earth, a security force maintains tenuous control in the Infected Zone straddling the U.S.-Mexican border. Andrew (Scoot McNairy), a photographer, is documenting this war-torn area when he’s interrupted by an unexpected rescue mission. Samantha (Whitney Able), daughter of a media mogul who just happens to be his boss, needs an escort home, and Andrew reluctantly takes on the job.
It’s true that the film moves slowly for a story that revolves around aliens, which was the curious draw for me. What I loved about it is that it’s not really about the alien creatures at all, it’s about the relationship between the journalist and the girl. Although the script has some serious problems, (wayyy too much exposition, and dialogue that doesn’t ring true at times), the idea is pretty great. I think that Mr. Edwards hit on some very good points along the way, but was not able to bring those out. It ended a little abruptly. I really wanted at least a little epilogue. For a film that was done for less than 1 mil. it looks freaking fantastic though. If I can find a DP like this for my stuff, I would be ecstatic. Definitely something to check out.
I was also able to catch a pre-screening of PAUL with those crazy guys from Shaun of the Dead. 
It was so much fun! From IMDB:
Two British comic-book geeks traveling across the U.S. encounter an alien outside Area 51.
I don’t want to give anything away so I won’t write a lot about it. There were definitely laugh out loud moments and the whole film is chock full of sci-fi references, some of which I’m sure I missed. Paul, the alien is voiced by Seth Rogen. It’s nice to hear his voice and not see his face. He’s not my favorite actor, but he is funny. The entire cast is a win for me: Jason Bateman, Sigourney, Bill Hader, Jane Lynch… it just keeps going. The film is out on March 18th. Definitely a fun one to catch.
These alien movies make me really excited for Aliens & Cowboys which will be out July 29th. Oh yes.
