Monster

Theatrical Release Date: 2003 12 24 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 043396055520

Studio: Columbia TriStar

MPAA Rating: R   Contains:[Graphic Violence, Brief Nudity, Strong Sexual Content, Rape & Sexual Abuse, Not For Children, Profanity]

Summary: Model-turned-actress Charlize Theron leaves her glamorous image behind for this gritty drama, in which she plays a disturbed prostitute who becomes a serial killer. Aileen Wuornos (Theron) was a woman who survived a brutal and abusive childhood in Michigan to become a thick-skinned but emotionally damaged adult. Homeless most of her life, Wuornos subsisted by working as a street prostitute; later, when she was in Florida, down to her last five dollars and pondering suicide, she stopped into a bar for a beer. There, Aileen met Selby Wall (Christina Ricci), a woman in her early twenties who had been sent to live with relatives after her Christian parents became aware of her lesbian lifestyle. Selby is immediately attracted to Aileen, and while Aileen tells Selby she's never been in a lesbian relationship, she soon finds herself equally infatuated with her. Selby runs away from her family and moves into a cheap hotel with Aileen, who initially pays the bills by hooking. However, as their money runs low and Aileen finds herself unable to land a regular job, tensions mount between the two. One night, after a john attacks her, Aileen pulls a gun and kills the man. Although her first murder can be categorized as self-defense, Aileen's loathing for the men who pay her for sex becomes so extreme that she begins killing her customers regardless of their behavior. Meanwhile, Selby slowly becomes aware of the full extent of her lover's instability and the bloody consequences of her actions. Monster was inspired by the true story of Aileen Wuornos, whose life and death was chronicled in two documentaries by filmmaker Nick Broomfield, Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer, and Aileen: The Life and Death of a Serial Killer. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: Best Actress – San Francisco Film Critics Circle Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama – null Best Actress – National Society of Film Critics Best Actress - Runner-up – Los Angeles Film Critics Association Best Actress – Screen Actors Guild Best Actress – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Silver Bear for Best Actress – Berlin International Film Festival Best Breakthrough Actress – National Board of Review Best First Feature – Independent Spirit Awards Best First Screenplay – Independent Spirit Awards Best Actress – Independent Spirit Awards Best Actress – Chicago Film Critics Association Best Actress – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Picture – American Film Institute Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama – Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Features: ccTheatrical trailer
International trailer
Scene selections
Featurette
DTS film mixing demo featurette
Interview with Patty Jenkins and BT

Monster

Format: DVD

Release Date: 06/01/2004

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Theatre Wide-Screen

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS Digital Theater Systems

Runtime: 109 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English

Subtitles: Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 --
1. Opening Credits [2:29]
2. Selby [3:34]
3. Bar's Closed [1:41]
4. 5 Dollar Bill [4:19]
5. You Look Good [1:42]
6. What's Ohio Like? [7:13]
7. Tricks [2:30]
8. Quick Ride [5:45]
9. Give Me a Week [4:50]
10. Cheers [4:06]
11. This Is Big [4:50]
12. Day Off [4:25]
13. Party, Party, Party [3:45]
14. Settle First [3:20]
15. The Monster [6:40]
16. You're Welcome [2:51]
17. Funworld [3:37]
18. Discipline [1:34]
19. Hear Me Out [:43]
20. Victor [7:18]
21. Circumstance [5:44]
22. All Set [6:12]
23. Not You, Tom [4:16]
24. Only Me [2:45]
25. End Credits [6:33]

Josh Ralske

Perhaps Charlize Theron's awe-inspiring performance will be the thing that people remember most about Monster, but the film as a whole marks a surprisingly scrupulous and thought-provoking treatment of sensational subject matter from writer/director Patty Jenkins, making her feature debut. The film is good enough to be more than just a companion piece to filmmaker Nick Broomfield's outstanding documentaries on serial killer Aileen Wuornos, but a viewing of those documentaries validates both Jenkins' vision and Theron's amazingly accurate portrayal of the woman. Theron perfectly captures the way, for example, the sides of Wuornos' mouth turn downward in repose. Theron's turn is not a mere imitation, but captures the tormented spirit of the woman. The crux of the film is the unexpected romantic relationship that forms between Wuornos and Selby. Selby, a fictional stand-in for Wuornos' real-life paramour, Tyria Moore, is well played by (Christina Ricci). Monster has been unfairly criticized for romanticizing Wuornos' depravity, but the film simply shows us that these brutal actions were undertaken by a real live woman, driven to desperation by a lifetime of abuse and newfound financial pressures. The film portrays her actions in a way that makes them comprehensible, but not defensible. Ironically, Aileen's first opportunity to be loved is what effectively pushes her over the edge, until she gradually slips away into madness. As with Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, the underlying issue is class. The truth of precisely what Wuornos did and why may never be known, but Monster is an accomplished, absorbing, and assiduously moral film that feels like truth. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Robb Chamberlain  Actor 
Brett Rice  Actor 
Catherine Mangan  Actor 
Bubba Baker  Actor 
Marc Macaulay  Actor 
Marco St. John  Actor 
Mark Damon  Producer 
Donald Kushner  Producer 
Brad Wyman  Producer 
Charlize Theron  Producer 
Clark Peterson  Producer 
Andreas Grosch  Executive Producer 
BT  Composer (Music Score) 
Andreas Schmid  Executive Producer 
Sammy Lee  Executive Producer 
Stewart Hall  Executive Producer 
Patty Jenkins  Director 
Patty Jenkins  Screenwriter 
Meagan Riley-Grant  Executive Producer 
Charlize Theron  Actor 
Christina Ricci  Actor 
Bruce Dern  Actor 
Scott Wilson  Actor 
Pruitt Taylor Vince  Actor 
Lee Tergesen  Actor 
Annie Corley  Actor 

Country: USA