Best Film at SXSW 2010: Monsters

[JTStarkiller]

I've been seeing quite a few films since SXSW kicked off on Friday (KICK-ASS rocked!) and I'm here to give you guys a quick scoop on what I think is the best film of the festival so far, and what will most likely stay that way: MONSTERS.



Monsters is the directorial debut of British director Gareth Edwards. The story: Six years ago a NASA probe that has been collecting samples has fallen out of the sky and brought some alien life with it. The government is still trying to contain the aliens, and the northern half of Mexico is now known as the "infected zone." The film follows an American journalist in Mexico that agrees to escort an American woman back to her home.

At the Q&A after the film, Edwards stated that he wanted to make a film that, unlike other films that tell the story of the event, starts where those films normally end. Without giving anything away, the film is at its core a gripping human drama, but with a sci-fi backdrop.

I consider myself a pretty big fan of the sci-fi genre, and my favorite sci-fi films of the last ten years include Cloverfield, Sunshine, Moon, District 9, Solaris, etc. Monsters easily ranks among these, and if you like any of the films I just listed, I think you'll really like it as well.

There are approximatey 250 effects shots in the film, and Edwards did every one of them by himself on his laptop, and while he's no ILM, the effects are very, VERY good. The film is beautifully filmed on the Sony EX-3, and has the feeling of a higher budget film. The Hollywood Reporter just posted an article that the film is getting distributed by Magnet Releasing hopefully in the near future, and I'll try to keep this thread updated when I can, because I have a feeling a lot of you will really enjoy this one.

Magnet nabs 'Monsters'