Monos (2019)

The film is a hypnotic triumph, a dizzying fable of child soldiery that immerses viewers in a world of war and adolescence. The critic singles out the brilliant youthful ensemble cast and Mica Levi’s breathtaking score for particular praise.

This visceral, viscerally philosophic film is a towering achievement that examines primal instincts through a sensorial barrage transcending the screen. It singles out the thunderous stylistic panache, cinematography, and hypnotic score for praise.

Alejandro Landes's surrealist portrait of child soldiers living in chaos is an anarchic and unpredictable experience right until the end. Monos is one of the year’s most extraordinary films, with feverish visuals creating a disarming, almost surrealist universe where anarchy takes hold.

The critic praises the superb war drama as a gripping fever dream that builds a compelling social ecosystem among the teenage soldiers and shifts into a primal jungle odyssey. It balances mythic imagery, a haunting Mica Levi score, and a troubling moral dimension about children as weapons.

The critic finds Monos a singular, original work of heavy atmosphere and thrilling set-pieces that blurs morality in a nihilistic world. They single out the memorable images, exciting action, dream-like logic and Mica Levi’s percussive score for particular praise.

Alejandro Landes’ astonishing film is a sublimely crafted saga of child soldiers evolving their own mini-society, presenting ugly reality in profoundly paradoxical, surreal terms. It singles out the fever-dream art, DP Jasper Wolf’s imagery, and Mica Levi’s score for praise.

The critic calls Monos the most sensitising film of the year, praising its lucid, fast-paced storytelling and subversive elements despite the grisly content. They highlight the economical and innovative direction, superb acting and immersive stunts.

The critic finds the film an inspired, stylish portrait of teenage paramilitaries whose hyper-stylized antics and Mica Levi score create an intensely watchable, sensually rhythmic experience. She highlights the crisp widescreen compositions and the way the film evokes both abstract inquiry and the shadow of Colombia’s civil conflict.

The blistering third feature by Colombian-Ecuadorian filmmaker Alejandro Landes starts with training rituals that recall the physicality of Claire Denis’ Beau Travail. It amounts to much more than straightforward moralising over youth and innocence lost to war, with hallucinatory detours enhancing the fever dream quality.

Imagine a juddering collision between William Golding's Lord of the Flies and Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, and you get the gist of Alejandro Landes's exceptional study of a group of young soldiers. The juvenile ensemble is uniformly impressive, as Landes captures their naivety and cruelty in a soul-crushing saga that shifts between wrenching realism, terrifying lyricism and disarming surrealism with edgy control and uncompromising potency.

Monos is a surreal and mesmerising Latin American take on Lord of the Flies, visceral and disquieting with bursts of colour and chaos. The critic praises its conjuration of a surreal experience from tactile reality but notes its festival context.

‘Monos’ is the strangest, most unsettling piece of survival warfare you’ll see all year – yes, including ‘Love Island’ – but it’s also one of the most mesmerising. There’s no moralising here: these are dead-eyed survivors in a gorgeously atmospheric film that infiltrates a place inside you – an anxiety about our future that lingers.

The film is fascinating but sometimes frustrating, with a story of child soldiers that lacks depth compared to other works on the subject. It is elevated into epic territory by the superb cinematography capturing powerful landscapes and light.

The critic describes the film as a thrilling, fast-paced survivalist saga that distills guerrilla warfare into sheer anarchy, akin to a Lord of the Flies scenario with added guerrilla elements. Landes captures the anarchic energy of the young soldiers' world effectively at Sundance.

The film revises the premise of Lord of the Flies with child soldiers in an abstract setting, delivering striking images and an extraordinary score while shifting focus in its second half. It is most compelling when verging on abstraction but some magic evaporates at jungle level.

Lord of the Flies meets Apocalypse Now in this riveting drama about teenage revolutionaries succumbing to violent power struggles. The vivid and credible performances from the young cast are praised, but the message is deemed too familiar and platitudinous.

The critic views the film as a superficial, hedonistic riff on Lord of the Flies that depicts amorality with minimal curiosity and relies on numbing stylistic verve rather than deeper insight. Conflict remains purely aesthetic, with meaning largely derived from Mica Levi's score.

This sophisticated-looking allegory is cagey about what it allegorizes and ultimately frustrating in its muddled half-ideas. The critic singles out the use of a sophisticated cinematic apparatus in service of unclear themes for complaint.

The critic finds the film a bleak and ghastly jungle thriller about child soldiers descending into depravity and violence, comparing it unfavorably to a version of Kids or Lord of the Flies. Landes's attempt at an abstract fever dream is undermined by exploitative elements and a shameless final shot.

The review calls Monos an extraordinary, singular piece of world cinema and one of 2019’s most distinctive films. It singles out the hallucinatory splendour of its mountain-and-jungle setting and the way it stands alone as a wild, surprising ride.

The critic finds the film unsettling and authentic, calling it one of the best of 2019 and an experience that demands to be seen. They single out its intimate portrayal of the group's dynamics and its bold, experimental approach to the war drama genre.

The critic sees the film as a philosophical exploration of group dynamics and freedom from civilization's constraints. They single out its powerful images and feelings that examine timeless ideas through the teens' attempts to create their own rules.

The critic describes the film as a ferocious action drama that blends Lord of the Flies with Apocalypse Now, praising its unsettling commentary on civilization through the story of child soldiers. Cinematography and the film's experiential portrayal of the harsh environment and shifting group dynamics are singled out as strengths.

The critic describes Monos as a thrilling, dreamy and impressionistic survivalist movie whose surreal beauty and humanity shine through even its most brutal moments. It singles out the distinct cinematic style and Mica Levi’s bewitching score for particular praise.

The critic describes the film as having a queasy, uneasy nightmare feel from the start. They single out its focus on drilling the chaotic emotions of the kids and captive deep into the viewer.

The film is a fascinating but sometimes vague coming-of-age story, one the critic has grown to admire more than enjoy. The critic singles out the stunning imagery from Landes and cinematographer Jasper Wolf for praise.