Domestic violence is a serious issue that exists not only in America, but around the world. As many as ten million people will face it at some point in their lives and the problem doesn’t seem to be getting any better. And despite being so prevalent in our society, there aren’t many movies that address the dangers of domestic violence. Fortunately, writer and director Michael Rock’s directorial debut The Murder of the Monster explores the not just domestic violence in a relationship, but the consequences when it goes unanswered.
42 year old Jessica Lampiere (played by Annie Lane) has been dating her boyfriend Wyatt Kemp (played by Eddie Blake) for two years. While things were going smoothly between the two, with Wyatt being elected to the city council and making enough money to support them, things take a dark turn when he begins abusing Jess. It gets to a point where Jess doesn’t feel safe living with him. Her attempts to tell law enforcement are futile as she suffers more and more at the hands of her abuser. With nowhere left to go and feeling like she has no other options, she contemplates a dark plan to permanently escape him.
Unlike a lot of typical found footage movies, The Murder of the Monster presents itself more as a documentary stylized as found footage. I’d like to compare it to The Office, where characters talk to the camera to tell the audience their true thoughts. However unlike The Office, the footage is not played for laughs at all. Rather, Jess is recording evidence of what happens behind closed doors. Not only does she feel helpless against her abuser, but he is also a powerful man financially and politically. His status and wealth enable his abuse while caging Jess mentally and emotionally.
While we’re on the topic of Wyatt, I have to say I’m really impressed with Eddie Blake as Wyatt. Not only is he physically imposing, but he also perfectly captures the essence of an abusive man. The way he changes the cadence of his voice when he’s around Jess compared to when he’s around others highlights his manipulative nature. While I always say that it’s ok to hate the character and not the actor, I can understand why some people hate actors for portraying a shitty person. I couldn’t help but feel a simmering hatred towards Eddie as Wyatt, that is until I kept reminding myself this is a movie and he’s playing a part. But my favorite performance by far is Annie Lane as Jess. Not only does she perfectly capture Jess’ feelings of fear and hopelessness, she also adds a layer of sincerity and realism to Jess. From her subtle yet sudden eye movement, to the slight shake of her hands whenever she holds a glass of wine tells just how much Jess went through. It’s really eye-opening to see such a raw and emotional performance. There’s a reason why I love indie films so much: they are a gold mine of both creativity and passion.
I really love how color is used throughout the film. We see shades of blue, orange and red being used quite liberally in the film to enhance the mood of the characters. For example, a warm orange is present whenever Jess is onscreen to show the vulnerability behind her brave face and a cool blue is present whenever Wyatt is onscreen with Jess. Meanwhile, his bedroom is lit a dark shade of red to drive home his monstrous nature. The color red is traditionally used as an indicator for either passion or aggression. However, red has also been used in horror films to signify incoming danger and death. Given Wyatt’s absolutely horrid treatment of Jess, we are in a constant state of fear whenever we see them in his bedroom.
Now I’ve seen a lot of movies, including movies that are pretty difficult to stomach despite being phenomenal (cough, Requiem for a Dream). But I’ve yet to see a movie that juggles domestic violence on the level that The Murder of the Monster does. Not only was I speechless at the end, but I felt visibly uncomfortable while watching it. And the scary part is that there are people who fight domestic violence and human trafficking who witness horrifying events every single day. Getting even a tiny glimpse of what they see on a regular basis is a hard pill to swallow. I’m really grateful for the mentally and emotionally grueling work they do so that the world can be a safer place. Regardless if you agree with my opinion on the movie, you cannot deny that what these people do takes plenty of guts.
With that being said, I felt that the dialogue was a bit stilted and wooden at times. Despite a powerful performance by its leads, the lines they are given vary in quality. Some scenes are powerfully written while others are a bit more on the nose, for example Wyatt’s interaction with Detective Leo Roman. But my biggest complaint of the movie would be the editing. The film uses fades to black to convey a passage of time, but it overuses this technique. Meanwhile, some scenes go on a bit too long especially in the third act and dragged out the film. Do these criticism hurt the film? Not really, but they occasionally break some of the tension. But given that this is Michael Rock’s directorial debut, I think he did a wonderful job for his first film and hope that he will continue to improve.
In an age of cinema where movies perpetuate shallow messages with cookie-cutter plots, The Murder of the Monster brings us down to a very real and troubling issue around us. Domestic violence is no laughing matter and is far from having an immediate solution. Bolstered by raw and realistic performances, especially by Annie Lane as the female lead, Michael Rock’s The Murder of the Monster is a harrowing and sincere depiction of the dangers of domestic violence and spousal abuse. If you do decide to check it out, make sure to watch till the very end. Be warned: it’s a very emotionally heavy experience to witness what revelations lie behind closed doors.
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