Monster Limited Edition Blu-Ray (2003) Review
Monster Limited Edition Blu-Ray (2003) Review
Charlize Theron gives a tour-de-force performance as America’s first female serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster (2003), from director Patty Jenkins (Wonder Woman), that earned her accolades galore, including the prestigious best actress Oscar® in 2004. Now almost 20 years on from its original, lauded theatrical release, the film is set for the Limited Edition treatment from Second Sight Films.
Based on true events, this darkly chilling, gripping drama will be released on Blu-ray in a stunning Limited Edition Box set, presented in a rigid slipcase, with new artwork by Daniel Benneworth-Gray. It comes with a soft-cover book, featuring brand new essays and a host of special features; from brand new interviews to archive commentaries that take you behind the scenes and into the mind of a real-life Monster. The set is released on 15 August 2022 and available to pre-order now.
Aileen Wuornos (Charlize Theron – Mad Max Fury Road, Bomb Shell) has had it tough, but when the down-on-her-luck sex worker moves to Florida she unexpectedly finds love and is determined to get her life back on track.
Befriending Selby Wall (Christina Ricci – Buffalo ’66, Yellow Jackets), a sweet but reserved young woman, a romance soon blossoms. But things take a dark turn when a john tries to assault Aileen. She fights back and kills him and decides it’s time to give up the game.
But Aileen quickly discovers going straight isn’t that easy and is sucked back into a world of violent crime that escalates from petty theft to serial murder. As more and more men turn up dead, Selby starts to suspect the woman closest to her is responsible.
The script, direction and performances are pitch-perfect, with a near-unrecognizable Charlize Theron rightly nabbing an acting Oscar for her gobsmacking transformation, and I am not just referring to the make-up work and the thirty-pound weight gain that turned Theron into Aileen Wuornos, but also the way in which she ‘becomes’ the person, gets right under the skin of the character. It’s an honest performance, one that allows the viewer to make up their own mind about Wuornos.
When I saw MONSTER at the cinema, back on it’s initial UK theatrical release, I can remember being both moved and disturbed by it, and nearly twenty years later I feel much the same, it’s lost none of its power. So yes, it’s a great film, but as to whether it’s one that I would want to buy and have in my collection, probably not. In the same way I wouldn’t wish to watch or own DELIVERANCE or SCHINDLER’S LIST, great films but seeing them once, and being affected by them once, is, for me, enough. Neither are films that I would like to return to and watch again, and that’s how I feel about MONSTER. It’s terrific stuff, but harrowing too, and owning it for repeat viewings just wouldn’t be my bag.
Special Features
Audio Commentary with Writer / Director Patty Jenkins, Actor / Producer Charlize Theron and Producer Clark Peterson
Making a Murderer: a new interview with Director Patty Jenkins
Producing a Monster: a new interview with Producer Brad Wyman
Light From Within: a new interview with DoP Steven Bernstein
Monster: The Vision and Journey
Based on a True Story: The Making of Monster
Deleted and Extended Scenes with Director Commentary
Monster: Evolution of the Score
Original Trailer
English subtitles for the hearing impaired
Limited Edition Contents
Rigid slipcase with new artwork by Daniel Benneworth-Gray
Soft cover book with new essays by Anton Bitel, Hannah Strong & Shelagh Rowan-Legg
6 collectors’ art cards
