Searching for a missing friend in Bigfoot county, USA, a young woman (Anna Shields) instead finds an emotional and physical connection in the mysterious Alex (Rachel Finniger), the charming but intense stranger she met online, under false pretenses. But just who is responsible for the disappearances at Whitehall, NY? The elusive Bigfoot himself, or something far more human?
Director Bruce Wemple appears to give all the answers right off the bat, but Monstrous will keep viewers guessing to the end regardless. It opens with a shockingly brutal Bigfoot attack, setting the tone for a movie that Monstrous isn’t – not really. This film’s interests are far more human than that – in the burgeoning relationship between Sylvia and Alex, and the evil that men (or women) do. Besides, once we do get to see the Bigfoot suit again – it’s not all that.
Well-acted by its two stars and written with deliberation and pace (by Shields herself, no less), this is a thoughtful character study and a slowly unfolding mystery – a more serious version of Creep, but without all the found footage and peachfuzz. Its inevitable twist is signposted from a mile off, but no less engaging for it. This slow, atmospheric roadtrip may lack the Bigfoot chills and spills fans had been hoping for, but it’s more than capable of standing on its own two regular-sized feet.
