Monsters (TV Series) Jar (1989) User Reviews

Effective Southern Gothic chiller

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 10 August 2015]

JARS is a nice little episode of the MONSTERS TV show and one of the best of season two. It stars the exquisite Gina Gershon as a put-upon wife who checks into a sleazy, run-down motel in the swamps with her abusive husband. Soon enough she strikes up a conversation with a PI who also happens to be staying at the place, and meanwhile the proprietor has some unusual pickles for sale...

JARS is a relatively unpredictable story that works well on the low budget. There are only four characters in the narrative but each of them is well defined: Richard Edson is the sweaty, weird-looking PI who acts as the eyes and ears of the piece; Fritz Weaver is the mysterious motel owner, Ed Kovens the slobbish husband and Gina Gershon the alluring femme fatale, straight out of a 1940s film noir.

The horror in this show is kept to a bubbling undercurrent, but it emerges in one frightful, ALIEN-inspired moment involving some fantastically icky prosthetic effects work that has to be seen to be believed. It's certainly one of the most memorable scenes in the entire run of the show, making JARS an episode to be watched.

A perfectly fine episode, but, the lack of any sort of ending leaves it lacking for me.

[b_kite · 6/10 · 5 July 2019]

Our episode starts as a private eye Jack Bateman checks into a strange isolated hotel somewhere deep in a swamp with the intention of finding Ethel Cooper a woman who has been missing for several days. Mr. Hallet the hotel manager hasn't recalled seeing her saying she checked out and hasn't been seen since. Bateman is suspicious due to the fact several other people around the area have been reported missing as well. He decides to stick around and in the process meets Ann a young beautiful woman who is stuck in a horrible marriage to her much older husband abusive George (who may have a criminal background as well). One night Ann gives George a mysterious Jar which contains an odd face hugging type creature which hooks on to George's face and kills him, melting him down to nothing in the process. Bateman runs in and catches Ann, who confesses to the crime despite there being no evidence. She explains to Bateman that the creature is a strange sort of monster that comes from the swamps, and that Hallet has been keeping them in pickle jars for his own purposes. The two reconcile and have sex, following this they agree two enter a partnership when Ann obtains George's money. However both may have there own intentions when it comes who claims it. This is a pretty good episode primarily due to some nice prosthetic effects used towards the middle when our "Aliens" type face huger monster kills George. Other then that there's enough going on to fill out the short 21 minute run time, the only sad part is there's really no ending, it's left pretty much up to the viewer the fate of our two leads and while I'm usually not against this, its almost like they just ran out of time and had to wrap the episode up in a hurry. Despite this there's a nice cast on display here including Fritz Weaver from "Creepshow" who doesn't appear as much as I wish he would in it, and Gina Gershon who is giving a strange kinda forced performance almost like she's in a stage play or something. Overall, its a perfectly fine episode, but, the lack of any sort of ending leaves it lacking for me.

Very good Monsters episode.

[poolandrews · 6/10 · 31 May 2009]

Monsters: Jar starts as private eye Jack Bateman (Richard Edson) walks into an isolated swamp-side motel & ask's about Ethel Coomer who has been missing for six days. The motel manager (Fritz Weaver) says she checked out & he hasn't seen her since, Bateman is suspicious as a lot of people have been reported missing in the area. Bateman then sees Ann (Gina Gershon), an attractive young lady trapped in an unhappy marriage to a much older man George (Ed Kovens) for his money. Something is amiss, the set-up told to Bateman by both Anne & George are different & why does the motel manager react so strangely around the various jars of green gunk that he has lying around the place?

Episode seven from season two of Monster this originally aired in the US during November 1989, directed by Bette Gordon this is a very good episode but like so many Monsters episodes it has a strong & imaginative enough central plot but just doesn't do that much with it & I wish there were more unexpected twist endings which I think the horror anthology show should be all about. The story here in Jar is good, quite a bit happens over it's twenty odd minute duration but the horror aspects of this episode are played down a bit as it becomes a murder mystery thriller where character's try to figure each other out & play each other for their own ends. The ending is quite good & although not really a twist one could say it finishes almost just as the story is starting which might leave you wondering where things go from here. Jar is a good episode but mostly for a good story rather than it's horror or monsters content.

The monster in this episode is some green Alien (1978) style face-hugger sort of creature that sucks people into nothing & is exploited as the perfect murder weapon which is kind of cool but as I said they aren't the main focus of the story. There's a good atmosphere as usual with good sets & decent special effects. Director Gordon manages to create a little tension & mystery surrounding the jars at the start at which point the viewer doesn't know what is in them. The acting is alright, future star Gina Gershon is pretty sexy in an early role for her.

Jar is a good episode that passes twenty odd minutes but like a lot of season two Monsters so far it is just lacking a little something. Definitely worth watching but I wouldn't call it a classic.

Steamy double cross like betrayal and passion tale.

[blanbrn · 7/10 · 5 November 2020]

"Jar" from season 2 of "Monsters" aired in 1989 and it is one interesting and intriguing tale that builds with drama and suspense plus it has tense sex appeal before twisting in the end. Set in a motel the keeper Hallet(Fritz Weaver "Creepshow") rents to often shady customers and inside his motel a strange jar is present did it come from the nearby swamps is it infected as you the viewer ask. Now enter Ann(in a hot sexy turn from Gina Gershon) who's staying the night with her husband who she wants to depart from, now enter Jack a private eye who's on the prowl really much of this is a throwback to a little bit of "Chinatown" or L.A. Confidential like feel. The episode twist with passion and a steamy double cross with the mystery like jar doing it's gory and gross like work to set Ann and Jake free. Overall well done story that has a triangle that twist one of the series better episodes.

Neat episode

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 6 September 2019]

Shady private eye Jack Bateman (a nice performance by Richard Edson) becomes smitten with alluring and conniving femme fatale Ann (ably played with sultry aplomb by Gina Gershon, who looks positively ravishing), who plans to get rid of her abusive jerk husband George Spires (a spot-on obnoxious portrayal by Ed Kovens) by using the contents of a mysterious jar.

Director Bette Gordon adroitly crafts a smoky and shadowy noir atmosphere as well as keeps the engrossing story moving along at a steady pace. Gerson and Edson have a ball with their colorful roles while Fritz Weaver lends sturdy support as the crotchety motel owner Mr. Hallet. Further enhanced by stylish cinematography by Michael Mayers, a cool jazzy score, a gnarly sequence in which a guy's body disintegrates, and a clever open ending, this episode overall rates as a real winner.