Monolith |
  • Germany / USA • 1993 • 91m •    • Directed by: John Eyres. • Starring: Bill Paxton, Lindsay Frost, John Hurt, Louis Gossett Jr., Paul Ganus, Musetta Vander, Andrew Lamond, Mark Phelan, Alex Gaona, Angela Gordon, Boris Lee Krutonog, Jennifer Naud, Steve Barbro. • Music by: Frank Becker.      Two cops investigating the murder of a young boy become invloved in a very secret project involving alien life. Needless to say, the authorities don't want them to stick their noses into this.
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Review:
Enter two cops, played by Bill Paxton and Lindsay Frost. They're at odds with each other from day one, yet form a grudging respect and affection for one another by the end of the flick. They stumble onto the government's plan and after chases, watching their commander (played well by Louis Gossett, Jr.) get killed, and poorly staged fights, they manage to thwart John Hurts' plans and all is well...sort of.
The good thing is director John Eyres manages to build some suspense with this flick in spite of working with a low budget. Paxton and Frost work well together even though the dialog between them--otherwise known as playful banter--is often stultifyingly bad. John Hurt overacts marvelously. His speech at the end ("I've earned this moment, I deserve this moment") should win an Oscar...or a Razzie. There's an amusing scene with a guard at the Department of Historical Research, an excellent good-copbad cop scene (very well edited, IMHO), and the music is surprisingly effective.
The downsides to this film begin with the title. With a name like 'Monolith' I was expecting some kind of immense stone structure. We get a spaceship instead. (It's pretty cool, but still...) The dialog also could have been a lot better. A lot. Really, I'm surprised that the leads managed to work up any sympathy for themselves with some of the lines they had to spout and that's due to good acting more than anything else. The explanation for Paxton's wife's death is never fully explored although it can be guessed from the flashbacks, but is underdeveloped. I really think if Eyres had been given a decent budget and the script had been worked on more, it could have been elevated into 'A' status. Sadly, it wasn't, but it's still a very likable film in spite of its deficiencies.
Review by MasterFantastic from the Internet Movie Database.
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