[SShaw]

I was lucky enough to see a preview screening of Monsters last night at the Watershed in Bristol, followed by a Q&A with the director.

Monsters is yet another British micro-budget feature that through a great script and a lot of skill puts many of the bigger budget films out of Hollywood to shame. It did very well at SXSW earlier in the year on the back of which it seems to have gotten very good distribution (out first week of December) which should see it play across most of the UK.

But is it any good?

While comparisons with Cloverfield and District 9 are sensible, they are perhaps a little lazy. The film follows a war photographer as he struggles to return his bosses daughter from South America to the US passing through the "infected zone" a region of Mexico which has been contaminated by creatures from outer space. Shot with just two professional actors (both of whom are excellent) and only 5 crew using found locations and a remarkable non-professional cast this film really shows that a good story well told can more than make up for a lack of budget (a lesson our friends in Hollywood seem to have forgotten).

I really enjoyed this - go see it.