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(2003)
Genre: Biography/Drama
Director: Patty Jenkins
Writer: Patty Jenkins
Synopsis: A dark tale based on the true story of Aileen Wuornos, one of America's first female serial killers. Wuornos had a difficult and cruel childhood plagued by abuse and drug use in Michigan. She became a prostitute by the age of thirteen, the same year she became pregnant. She eventually moved to Florida where she began earning a living as a highway prostitute--servicing the desires of semi-truck drivers. The tale focuses on the nine month period between 1989 and 1990, during which Wuornos had a lesbian relationship with a woman named Selby. And during that very same time, she also began murdering her clientele in order to get money without using sex. This turned the tables on a rather common phenomena of female highway prostitutes being the victims of serial killers--instead Wuornos, herself, carried out the deeds of a cold-blooded killer. (Written by Sujit R. Varma)
Cast:
- Charlize Theron
- Christina Ricci
- Bruce Dern
jhunterfilmreview: A dark tale based on the true story of Aileen Wuornos, one of America's first female serial killers,
Monster is a disturbing docudrama. Wuornos, a former prostitute, was executed in 2002 for the killing of seven men in the late 1980s. She is played by Charlize Theron (
Hancock, The Burning Plain, The Italian Job), and her lover, Selby Wall, played by Christina Ricci (
Sleepy Hollow, Anything Else, The Ice Storm). Other than a few short films,
Monster, is the first feature film by writer and director, Patty Jenkins. The acting is definitely the highlight of this film, however. Theron gives her finest performance yet, as Wuornos the prostitute turned serial killer. She underwent a complete physical and psychological transformation for this complex and dark role - through the use of groundbreaking makeup and by gaining 13kg. Theron also utilised Nick Broomfield's 1992 documentary,
Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of A Serial Killer, to enhance her interpretation of the character. This was all clearly worthwhile, as Theron won many awards for her portrayal, including the Academy Award for Best Actress, Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Lead Actress. Furthermore, Ricci performs excellently in her supporting role as Wall. Perfectly conveying childlike naivety, seductiveness, stubbornness and growing manipulativeness. What is so unusual and fascinating about this film is that despite the heinous crimes that Wuornos commits, viewers actually begin to sympathise with her. Purely because you can clearly see what led her to make the decisions she made throughout her life. I absolutely love the graphic, disturbing, depressing and emotional aspects of
Monster, and I am utterly fascinated by the Aileen Wuornos story...
I give this film 8 stars...
