Monster Summer: Spooky Occurrences Abound in This Seaside Town

Teenagers who are tired of the same old, same old animated cinematic offerings and would like to enjoy a holiday flick which boasts a good story intertwined with mystery, horror and supernatural elements, Monster Summer is the perfect movie choice.

The story delves on Noah, a young teenager who dreams of following in his late father’s footsteps and becoming a journalist. Searching for the perfect story for the local paper, he investigates sinister occurances on the island which he resides off New Hampshire.

Children are being taken, their souls drained and then returned as braindead zombies by a witch. Noah and a couple of his friends try to restore order in their community, but law enforcement officers don’t take them seriously until a retired detective joins the gang.

Is there really a witch on the island or is Noah’s imagination simply getting out of hand as he attempts to chase the alleged story of the century? Will Noah and the gang ultimately restore normality in this quaint seaside community?

From the opening scene it was more than apparent this movie was produced for the young teenage market. Reminiscent of Netflix’s program Stranger Things, a cast of predominantly young actors headed by Mason Thames who came to fame in the supernatural horror flick The Black Phone (and soon in the upcoming live action How To Train Your Dragon) carry a majority of the movie delivering excellent performances.

Mel Gibson is on hand portraying the retired detective in one of his few recent appearances on the big screen. Initially his character is deemed as a man who allegedly killed his family when his wife and child disappeared without a trace, but this leads to an unexpected and very poignant development in the story.

Monster Summer is set in the 1970’s during an era when children rode their bikes in groups enjoying the outdoors rather than today’s younger generation who are generally entranced by the latest technologies indoors.

Young audiences should be captivated, watching with eyes wide open, as this is the style of movie that captures the adventures which many teenagers would dream of experiencing off the screen.

Aside from a few ineffective and  underwhelming special effects in the finale, this is a clever and surprisingly fun holiday movie treat, with dark and scary themes offset by the style of witty dialogue especially written for Mel Gibson’s character.

Monster Summer

***

In Cinemas January 9