Monsters Of Man
An AI corporation which has manufactured robots designed for land warfare is being secretly negotiated with by the CIA. To assess the effectiveness of these troublemakers, they are deployed into the Golden Triangle on a mission to shut down an opium syndicate with maximum lethality. However, everything goes worse than bad when one of the machines gains self-awareness during what should have been a simple in-and-out job.
LOWDOWN: Doing action on a small budget is hard. Whereas most other types of stories can still work if they look and feel cheap, an action movie cannot survive without grandeur. Characters and story are important too, but the spectacle’s what sells it that’s why when a low-budget flick does manage to pull off some wow-factor stunts, people tend to talk about it. And let me tell ya right now, folks: Monsters Of Man is such a movie. It’s gritty, nasty and intense as all get out; but more importantly it knows how to do action right!
We may have bitten off a little more than we can chew with multiple storylines running at once. We’ve got the brilliant Neal McDonough as the CIA agent running the illegal operation, Hough, Haverty and Blackmore are the on-the-ground team doing the testing. The drug village is the target area; it’s not just filled with hardened criminals. This hits its sweet spot when it focuses between the tech nerds who are in over their heads and the village that has kids, an ex-soldier and lost humanitarian doctors who were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The heart of Monsters Of Man is innocent bystanders trying to survive an impossible situation and coders needing to own up to their ultimate role in this. Mark Toia separates Monsters Of Man from other killer robot films by putting his characters in a grey area. How at times, yes, lets their ego put them in unnecessary harm but also shows how reasonable bad guys can be in their demands sometimes too. Everyone here works within those grey areas of situations which helps keep this out of any “been there, done that” territories.
I was rooting for coder Kroger (David Haverty), who not only absolutely stole every scene he was in with his witty and relatable retorts (I loved his disdain for humidity), but that quick realization they’d be complicit in murder real quick then shut the f*ck up to save his own skin though! Jose Rosete plays handler Boller on the ground support, and though he’s “bad,” I couldn’t help but fall in love with him because there wasn’t any nonsense about Jose’s approach being rigid AF dude made me chuckle way more than I should’ve… Keep doin’ what you’re doin’, Rosete!
The true treat comes down to how well-executed these robots themselves are! For being a self-funded flick? This is some of the best robot CGI I’ve seen in YEARS. They look physically heavy, are affected by terrain and are very grounded in their design so always tense throughout because early on it’s established that these slaughter bots are practically indestructible and lethal as hell.
They get violent when it’s time to clean house and eliminate all witnesses, too; there’s quite a few gory scenes showing just how cold & precise these robots can be no one is safe: women, children or our cast of down on their luck characters either. Things do get pretty unpredictable! I tried guessing who would live or die and ended up wrong most times.
Any downside to this? Neal McDonough is criminally underused he spends the entire time in an office barking orders which don’t leave much room for him to show off those acting chops while running around shooting shit up like we know he can! Clocking in at over two hours, Monsters Of Man does repeat some of the same story beats as you can only run & hide for so long before becoming less invested in characters safety but even still.
This went on a bit too long could’ve used some trimming and punching up here or there but nothing too big gets in way nor hampers overall experience though by any means necessary whatsoever. As first-time feature for writer/director Mark Toia? I’m still impressed flaws included Yes A bit tighter may have helped but I still loved the tale being told.
GORE: Hold up. We see a face turned into pulp, a head smashed beyond recognition, and enough bullet holes to satisfy Paul Verhoeven.
BOTTOM LINE: Monster of Man is mean, gritty and unforgiving. It’s also a sci-fi action thriller that doesn’t shy away from the realities of war. On top of that, this small-budget effort from director Mark Toia shows once and for all that great CGI is possible if you spend your money wisely. Monsters Of Man is such a welcome end of the year surprise it scratches that bold, unflinching action itch I’ve been missing so much these days. Watch this bad boy with the volume cranked up and a stiff drink in hand. You won’t regret it.
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