Monolith

Again, this goes to show you don't need huge budgets to create good sci-fi. Absolute props to Lily Sullivan who's crushing it carrying the whole thing as a one-woman show. Now you have to know before you go in that it is extremely slow paced sci-fi with little to no special effects, and everything hinges on the atmosphere, closer to a psychological thriller in that way. In fact I find the poster for the movie a tad misleading. While it kept me engaged for the vast majority of the time, there are some pacing problems in certain places so that was unfortunate.

But overall it's definitely something I would recommend for people who can appreciate "non-flashy sci-fi".

A strong willed, but seemingly on the way out journalist runs a podcast covering unsolved mysteries from her parents' lavish, isolated home. When she receives an anonymous email she follows it up and is told of a strange black brick that had altered the life of an ex maid. Investigating further she discovers an art dealer who has acquired a few of the bricks and had them scanned - he sends the results to the journalist. As the investigation progresses further and more people contact her, she begins to realise that she may in fact be directly involved in the mystery herself.

A tense and interesting low budget independent sci-fi thriller filmed entirely in the house and with just one actor seen, the unnamed journalist, played convincingly by Lily Sullivan. The investigative element involving interviewing various affected characters over the phone is well done and is actually the best part, as the possible ways in which the brick might be affecting people slowly emerges leading in turn to how the mystery might be directly involving the journalist. It is sci-fi and inevitably it brings the threads together with a bit of out there weirdness, but it's well enough handled and overall this is a fascinating and tense 94 minutes.

Can I honestly urge you to put aside an hour and a half of your life to watch this? No, I don't think so. There's nothing wrong with this film. I am old, and remember radio plays (honest, they were entertaining, and tested one's imagination) and this feels like one of those. There's nothing 'cinematic' about it. It has one idea, and does it quite well. Should you be stuck inside on a rainy day and you've done all your chores, go ahead. You won't regret it. But going for a walk, tidying your house, finishing those jobs are more important.

Well acted, well presented, nicely structured. A good ending (if you've been paying attention to the hints).

Here's The 4K Lowedown on "Monolith" (R - 2022 - VOD)

Genre: Drama/Sci-Fi

My Score: 6.8 Cast=5 Acting=8 Trailer=7 Ending=5 Story=8 Visual=6 Direct=8 Sound=7 Genre=5 Sub-genre=9

A headstrong journalist whose investigative podcast uncovers a strange artifact, an alien conspiracy, and the lies at the heart of her own story.

"You have to stop what you're doing...you are in danger." What starts out slow begins to build...in intensity and suspense. When the sci-fi stuff started to kick in, I was fully on board...I couldn't wait for the ending. I think this just went a little too long and that caused the ending to be a little flat. This is available to rent on Prime for 3.99 and I feel this is worth a watch. I'll leave it up to you if you want to rent it or wait for it to appear on a streaming service.

After a career ending misjudgement, a Journalist uncovers a vague conspiracy theory through her podcast, as she digs deeper, she realises she's closer to the conspiracy than she first realised.

One of those films that you could easily dismiss as mehh, but if you stick with it, I think you may get something out of it. It held my attention all the way through.

Tagged as a horror, absolutely not, in no way, shape or form does this have a single scare, it's more a mystery, with sci fi undertones, you'll be kept intrigued enough, to want to hear the conclusion.

The twist at the end of the film was the highlight, and definitely the most unsettling sequence.

A very competent performance from Lily Sullivan, who carries the film pretty much single handedly.

7/10.