This short horror film was pretty good. It had some moments that were a bit creepy and I enjoyed the performances of both the mom and the little boy in this one. The atmosphere was good as the black and white made an everyday house and everyday things seem more sinister than they would have been otherwise. The story has a rather hyper active kid really beating down one of his stuffed toys, a rather ugly doll that to me resembled a witch a bit. Most kids can remember that childhood toy that really did not delight them, but rather scared the crap out of them. Well the boy seems convinced that the thing is alive and really freaks out when he glimpses it in the closet. Well the mother thinks it is just an over active imagination at first, but something seems a bit off kilter. Like I said this one overall was okay, my favorite part was when the mother heard something while she and her son were in bed and she looked out her door. To me that was the freakiest part in the film. The conclusion is a bit strange though, I did not completely care for it, but then I still feel I must give it credit for being original. The final scene is even more strange, but once again it was different. So while not the most shocking or creepy short horror film I have seen, it was an interesting watch and it did things a bit differently than one would normally expect.
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TBJCSKCNRRQTreviews16 August 2020A hyperactive child causes stress for his mother, until one day, a toy monster he's been fixated on comes to life.
This is primarily of interest due to it being a sort of prototype for The Babadook, by the same writer and director, the immensely talented Jennifer Kent. It's especially interesting to compare the two, and look at what was already present here in this short, and what is only in the later movie. I won't detail any of it, since doing so would require spoiling both of these, and I'm not going to be doing that in this review. However, it is a stimulating exercise, that I fully encourage anyone interested to do.
This is filmed and edited well. The strain that it puts on this single parent that her son is always running, playing, making noise, screaming, is conveyed well, without us just being frustrated watching. This is 9 minutes long without end credits, and 10 with them.
It is legitimately tense and scary, although other than that, there isn't any objectionable material in this. I recommend this to any fan of the film it was later turned into. 8/10 -
jack_o_hasanov_imdb28 August 2021I don't like watching short films. I watched the short film version of that movie before watching The Babadook. It was an average thing. This short film did not surprise me.
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bob the moo30 November 2014I have not seen The Babadook, but it was hearing positive reviews for that film that made me interested to see the short film that reportedly was the roots for the bigger project. The plot here is condensed as it seems a woman struggling alone with her unruly young son, in particular his constant running, yelling, and battling of monsters – making nothing but a mess in the progress. Worn down and frustrated by the constant energy and chaos of the boy, the woman may be forced to confront more than her own offspring.
This is an interesting and reasonably effective short film – and in particular it makes me more interested to see the full feature because to be honest one of the main weaknesses here is that the film is a short and has fewer than 10 minutes to deliver. Given the short running time, the film really does compress what it is doing, and it is a shame because what we have that works well here is stuff that needs more room to breathe and be realized. In terms of just being a horror, the film starts with a good creepy atmosphere and some nicely unsettling imagery. This leads to a jump scare that had me recoiling from the screen. The confrontation in the room remains creepy, but to be honest too much of the figure is seen, and it does feel like a moody teenage goth is being deliberately difficult; this does rather rob the fear factor a bit
That feeling may be partly deliberate though, since one of the things that appears to be here but not with enough time to run with it, is the idea that the monster is the son himself – or at least a metaphor for the mother's fear of her son's wild side and her inability to cope with it. We see this in the maternal way she confronts him, and the way she continues to care for him. We also see it in the exhaustion she feels in dealing with the son in the early stages of the film – and to be honest even watching him endlessly banging everything made me feel tired.
It is a shame for the short that the best parts of the film are those which really could have used more time and space to flesh out and be fully realized. The connection of the monster to the mother/son relationship is interesting but rushed; while the monster himself is too present too quickly and I would have preferred remain a feeling rather than an actual form. Worth a look and, on the basis of this, I am looking forward to see what Kent does with the substance of this when she has more time to do it. -
I must point out up front that horror isn't my favorite genre, so this could account for the high scores by some for MONSTER and my closer to average score. However, my disappointment also is because apart from evoking an excellent scary mood and one pretty funny scene where the mother takes on the monster, there isn't a lot of substance to this film. It seems to almost all be mood--music, cinematography and action--but not a whole lot of depth. In part, this must be because it's a short film but my one complaint about the genre in general is that so many films try to scare you but don't really have a lot more to them than just fright.
Now these complaints still bode pretty well for the film makers--they did achieve the right mood and the film was competently made--I just want to see a bit more plot next time. -
logicproreviews16 September 2018Monster follows a young boy and his mother who live together. The boy is frightened of a creepy doll that he eventually keeps in his closet. To help ease his terror, the mother lets him sleep with her in her room.
This is very atmospheric short and the jump scares work really well. I was genuinely on edge the whole time. I'd recommend watching this alone, late at night with the lights off. You are in for a treat!
This clearly inspired Kent's 2014 feature, the Babadook as both share many of the same horror tropes.
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Fernando-Rodrigues18 February 2021Solid performances and great atmosphere as on the film. (This Samuel is as annoying as The Babadook's Samuel!)
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arbaxter24 September 2006I saw this short film at the Shriekfest Film Festival in LA. In the story, a young boy believes there's a real-life monster living in his closet. At first, his mother dismisses her son's claims and thinks its his imagination running wild. The mother soon learns the haunting truth of what lies inside the closet. The director has an excellent command of the horror genre. The film is shot in grainy black and white and has a foreboding Gothic feel to it. She knows how to ratchet up the suspense, especially in the incredible staircase scene. The whole audience practically leaped out of their seats. The performances by the young boy and mother were solid and very convincing. I really liked the climatic scene in the film. The director took a different route from the usual gore fest and resolved the film in a creative and emotionally fulfilling way. Overall, its a great film that really scared the crap out of me.
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We saw this at SXSW 2006. Easily the favorite short of the festival! Excellent job all around.
The story of "Monster" is my favorite kind of scare - based on unrealistic childhood fears come to life.
I wasn't really expecting much when the grainy black and white spooled up, but man - was a I surprised! I also think some of the imagery may be lost on American audiences. There were a couple of "huh?" moments in the setup, but nothing distracting.
It could also just be my editor brain ;-)
All in all, this creepy, genuinely scary short is worth the search. I just wish it was available somewhere for purchase or online viewing. -
Theo Robertson12 December 2014AS the title character in DOCTOR WHO once stated " The most frightening place in a universe is a childs bedroom " . True even if it may be stating the obvious . Living on an island as a child I was sometimes worried about an incursion of Sea Devils and worried they could squeeze up the U bend of the loo and come crashing in to my bedroom before I knew what was going on . This short film by Jennifer Kent plays on that fear
The film is somewhat minimalist taking place entirely in one house featuring a mother , her young son and the protagonist of the title . I notice IMDb legend Bob The Moo has reviewed it. . Let me reveal a closely guarded secret about The Moo - he doesn't like horror movies and as he's stated he had hoped for a bit more space and development and looks forward to seeing the feature length film this short started off as . As for myself I can take each and every horror film on its own merit but often lament how difficult it is to do something new with a tired and staid genre . That said yesterday I saw a sci-fi horror called EXTRATERRISTIAL featuring a bunch of horny teens in a remote cabin which had nothing new to say to the audience and yet managed to compel and creep out this audience member . Kent does something similar here . Okay it's down to the obvious cheap tricks of using fast movement and silence followed by sudden loud noise which caused me to jump out of my seat . If I was watching this in the dark late at night I'd be running to switch the lights on and having difficulty sleeping . Compared to the monster in this film the Sea Devils are small fry -
Horst_In_Translation27 October 2015"Monster" is a 10-minute black-and-white short film written and directed by Jennifer Kent. She made this one 10 years ago and, recently, turned it into the full feature movie "Babadook", a great success with critics and awards bodies. However, i must ask: Do i really want to watch a film where a wicked monster simply disappears when the mother tells him to leave in order to protect her son? What kind of pathetic monster is that. I'd have expected it to come back at the end and kill the two in the most horrible manner. Instead, it accepts a glass of milk. Oh well.. I thought the film started well, also with the suspense if there really is a monster, but got worse quickly. Kent obviously did not cast the actors from this film for "Babadook" as the time gap was simply too big I guess. Forgettable short film. Not recommended.
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Horror_Flick_Fanatic5 August 2018It's a shame I came across this short 13 years after it was made. I loved the full featured film of 2014 when it came out. It's really nice to see the original inspiration for the 2014 film in this one.
I actually thought the monster in this one was scarier than the one from 2014. The little boy in this one is just as effective at annoying the adults as the 2014 film lol. But the boy was adorable just the same.