Monster (DVD)

It's gritty and it's emotional, but is it worth having on your shelf? That is really the question you have to ask yourself before putting Monster into your shopping cart.

There is no denying that this is an amazing film with amazing performances but it is also quite disturbing and seeing how the main reason for buying a movie on DVD is to be able to watch it more than once you have to begin to wonder just how much of this type of torment you can endure and how often.

Charlize Theron comes to life as the most notorious female serial killer ever in Aileen Wournos and along with Christina Ricci as her sidekick Selby Wall, you are about to enter a very dark and powerful movie that if it is to leave you emotionally unscathed I can only suggest we take your pulse.

As far as special features go there really aren't a ton to offer but what is here is very good and all are worth a peek starting with the "making-of" featurette that takes you behind-the-scenes and into the make-up chair with Charlize Theron to see what went into turning her from a South African blonde beauty into a completely different person. This featurette goes deep into the production and even touches on what I felt was one of the most horrendous and emotional scenes ever caught on film, which I will only describe as track 21 on the DVD to spare those of you that haven't seen the picture. Even going back and watching the making of that scene stirs up something inside of me, which is something I have never been able to say before.

The next feature I would like to touch upon is the Interview with director Patty Jenkins and composer BT, which is a portion of the film that I left out of my theatrical review, which a quite regret. It wasn't long after the release of Monster that I received a sampler CD of the Monster soundtrack and I was actually quite impressed as I never really noticed it before, but in watching the movie again on DVD I began to realize why. It just plays so well into the rollercoaster of emotions that go on throughout the film that you don't really notice it, and listening in on the interview on this DVD actually gives you a little more insight into how that was made possible.

Finally there is a section devoted to the actual mixing of the soundtrack involving sound effects, music and dialogue and it allows the viewer the opportunity to watch a designated scene with your choice of sounds available while you watch as you can mix and match any of the three at one time and preview it.

All in all, I still have to say that purchasing this DVD is a judgment call, but I will not deny that it is one of the better films to hit theaters in a long time, and is complimented on this DVD release with very worthy special features.