A Monster Calls

2017 • 108 minutes

About this movie

From the director of THE IMPOSSIBLE and the producers of PAN’S LABYRINTH, A MONSTER CALLS is a searing and fantastical story of one boy’s journey to confront the truth.

Liam Neeson (Taken) stars as the voice of The Monster, who visits Conor (newcomer Lewis MacDougall) while he struggles to come to terms with growing up, his mother’s illness (Felicity Jones – The Theory of Everything, Star Wars: Rogue One) and spending time with his grandma (Sigourney Weaver – Alien Anthology). The Monster takes Conor on an epic adventure into magical worlds through three tales that will help him confront his nightmare and the truth that threaten to destroy him.

A MONSTER CALLS is a unique and powerful story about growing up and the places we go to understand the world we live in.

Ratings and reviews

Its an imaginative approach to show how a child deals with death, grief, anger and loss. The production values are high and the pace of the film is nicely weighted. I liked the Monster and how it appears to the young boy, it's an intelligent film with understated performances from the supporting cast allowing the contrast of the boys emotions and actions. It's one of those films which stay with you after watching it, thought provoking and I would think and great help to anyone in a similar position i.e bereaved, children and parents. My only real criticism was that I didn't really buy the relationship between Mother and Son. She was too young looking to be believable for me and i thought she was his older sister at the beginning. I would have liked to have seen a more expressive actress for his mother like Anna Friel, she would have looked young enough but has the range to really add some connection to the son. I would day this film is a good to watch on a rainy Sunday afternoon, or a perhaps a drizzly Tuesday evening, not really a first date movie or a film to watch with the family at Christmas, unless the family have really expressed a preference to watch it,.

When I went to see this movie I expected it to be an adventure movie we're a boy meets a monster, they become friends and they go on an adventure. But it told a story of a child that has to cope with the fact that his mother is dying and he has to live with his grandmother who he hates and has to learn to cope by a tree monster who is actually his dead grandfather, it's a sad and emotional movie and is also one of the best in a long time.

Very interesting movie very dark and deep not for young kids. I don't know why I'd never heard of this film. Like other reviews say if you do not well up at this movie you have a heart of stone. Only criticism Sigourneys English accent it just wasn't quite right.