The boy Connor dreams of a monster. He sees it every day in his worst dreams.
Outside his window is a yew tree. It becomes a living being when the boy sleeps. It is the monster from his nightmares. But the monster is not entirely evil. He is talking to the boy. His stories allow Connor to find strength in himself and fight for a good life. The monster guides him.
The film “Voice of the Monster” (2016) was directed by Antonio Baiona from Spain. The picture was taken in the fantasy genre. This film is only partly filmed as fantasy. In general, this is a story about the life of an ordinary boy who has to deal with the hardships that life gives him.
The boy Connor always had nightmares. But this one was the worst. He was among the graves. And suddenly I saw my mother. She began to fly somewhere down into the precipice. He wanted to do something to help his mother, but he couldn’t. Connor just grabbed her hand and tried not to let go. At this moment, the boy experienced terrible horror and fear. This is how the movie “Monster” begins about what will happen next, the viewer will find out in the following frames.
Outside of his nightmares, Connor is an ordinary 12 year old boy. His parents are separated after their divorce. Connor lives with his mother named Lizzy. She is unwell. Connor takes care of the house. Cooks food, cleans the house, keeps clothes clean, and does other household chores. Their father, after the divorce, moved to America and started a new family there. Sometimes only he sees his son.
Boy Connor is now unsociable. He has sympathy for teachers who know about it. in what a difficult situation was a very young teenager. The worst thing is that he does not have those around him who can support him. Pupils who study with him in the same school only bully the child. The mother is getting worse. Connor is torn between two desires. On the one hand, the boy wants his mother to get better. On the other hand, he thinks about what is needed to make everything go faster.
By the way, the film is based on the novel by the writer Shivan Daoud. She died of cancer. When she found out about him, she decided to write a novel about a terminally ill woman who lives with her son. After the death of the writer, Patrick Ness completed the work.
Lizzie has a mother, Connor’s grandmother. She decides that it is better for him to be with her. However, the boy is not going to leave his sick mother and stays with her. Grandma is a tough person. This scares Connor away from her. These circumstances lead to the fact that the boy begins to be tormented by various night dreams filled with horror.
Nightmares have a connection with the yew tree that grows near their dwelling. During the boy’s illness, the tree turns into a living creature with a vile appearance. Connor is afraid of the monster. An incredible thing happens, the monster starts talking to him. This happens at night. The monster starts a kind of game with the boy. If he tells Connor three stories, he will tell him his fourth.
Now the stories begin. They talk about a prince who decided to kill himself in order to save his country. Another story tells of an Aesculapius who gave people the opportunity to heal, but was too greedy. The third story tells about a church minister who, on the one hand, spoke about love for his neighbor, and on the other, he simply robbed one doctor to the bone and he could no longer prepare medicines.
The monster talked a lot with the boy. But then Connor began to show intemperance, militancy. He did not like the hall in his grandmother’s house and he arranged a rout there. Then she attacked her abuser from school and was able to beat him.
Unfortunately, the film did not have a happy ending. The boy’s mother eventually died. Connor leaves for his grandmother. There he explores his mother’s room. Connor’s attention was drawn to the album, where there are pictures on which the same yew tree is drawn, and next to it are all the heroes of the monster’s stories.
The film is quite complex in terms of plot. He reveals the problem of human loneliness, especially a teenager. At this time, a person is still very vulnerable, therefore it is doubly hard to endure the life tests that fall on him. The problem of mother and son, the complexity of their relationship is also touched upon. But the main part of the story is devoted to the confrontation between good and evil.
