“Monos”– Movie Review

This past weekend at The New Directors/New Films festival, I attended its Centerpiece screening, the New York Premiere of the Colombian drama, “Monos”, with Julianne Nicholson.

Synopsis

When an American engineer is kidnapped in Colombia, can she escape or will she be held hostage until a ransom is paid?

Story

Monos is a team of paramilitary teenagers stationed in the mountains of Colombia.  They have been holding captive an American woman – Sara Watson (Nicholson), an engineer whom they call “Doctora”.  Periodically, she is called upon to provide “Proof Of Life” to the outside world in order to show that she is unharmed.  In their rugged terrain, Monos have been trained to survive, but Doctora, as clever as she may be, struggles. This group of young men and women have forsaken not only their family but also their identity – they now do not go by their given name or their family name, but instead by made-up nicknames.

While in the mountains, they become aware of the possibility of an impending attack.  The opposition forces looking to not only defeat Monos but also to rescue Watson are on their way.  Monos prepare for the attack by building trenches as well as moving Watson to a more secure location in order to make it harder for the opposition to find her.  Following an intense battle, they succeed in retaining Watson, but since the opposition was able to track them down, they will now need to relocate. It is at this point they vacate their mountaintop and head for the treacherous jungle. 

Once in the jungle, Watson becomes restless and decides that now is the time for her to attempt an escape.  When the soldiers are inattentive, Watson sneaks out with a limited collection of supplies, trying to navigate the jungle and its wide variety of hazards.  But once she thinks she’s reaching freedom, she’s cornered by a couple of soldiers who bring her back to their camp, this time chaining her so she can’t move too far.  One day, Watson is eventually able to overpower one of her captors, smash the chain and get away. This time, will Watson finally be able to reach civilization, or will the soldiers be able to recapture her yet again?  

Review

If you compare “Monos” to a cross between “The Heart Of Darkness”/”Apocalypse Now” and “The Lord Of The Flies”, don’t worry – you’re in great company.  Such comparisons are inevitable. Many others have already done the same. In fact, director Alejandro Landes pays homage to “Lord Of The Flies” – there’s actually a scene where a pig’s head is on a pike.  Also, Landes himself admits to borrowing some from “The Heart Of Darkness” when conceiving the movie. In any event, the look and feel of “Monos” is certainly reminiscent of both works – apparently intentionally so. 

“Monos” is definitely not for everyone.  If you are familiar with the internecine battles that have hampered Colombia over the decades, then you will likely have better insight to this motion picture.  Aside from its savagery, the viewer is left in the dark throughout much of the movie. For example, it is not until very late in the story that we learn who Doctora is and possibly why she was kidnapped (it’s still not certain exactly how she became their prisoner).  What was the reason these kids joined The Organization? We can probably guess, but again, it’s still not very clear. Character motivation is never explicitly stated. If this is a problem for you, then “Monos” might not be your type of film. While we may find ourselves rooting for Sara Watson’s freedom, at no time are we ever hoping for these adolescents to escape because they seem to enjoy their role.       

Following the screening, there was an interview with director Alejandro Landes, who said the shoot was challenging because of the extreme environments; everyone was stretched to their physical limitations.  He was even carried out on a stretcher at one point.  The movie was shot in Colombia, which, Landes said, was the initial inspiration for the film. For the past 60 years or so, the nation has been involved in a civil war; now, Landes states, they find themselves in something of a fragile peace agreement. Landes believes that the people are wary because there are so many splinter groups throughout the country that they’re not sure if they will continue fighting or simply give up.