Monsters: The Gift starts as young boy Jeffrey (John Bolger) is being held to ransom by two kidnappers (Abe Vigoda & Brad Greenquist) in an isolated log cabin. While in the basement they are attacked by a Werewolf like creature who turns out to be friendly & wanted to help Jeffrey but got shot for his trouble. As time passes Jeffrey & the beast strike up a friendship as the kidnappers scheme away upstairs...
Episode twenty two from season two of Monsters this originally aired in the US during May 1990, directed by Jeffrey Wolf this is yet another strange episode of Monsters that I am not quite sure who it was meant to appeal to. It's an odd episode alright with this beast like creature & Jeffrey forming an unlikely but heartfelt relationship, cinema is littered with such ideas where the innocence of youth look past outward appearances & befriend some monster most notably maybe E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982). The Gift is a clumsy & plodding twenty odd minutes of little value, some may like it but I would suspect most won't. The ending is unintentionally funny as a still image of Jeffrey is superimposed over his now beast like face. Overall quite a dull episode that goes for emotion & meaning but just doesn't manage it.
The sets are good here but nothing is done with them & there's no horror here, it's all about the moral message of looking beyond outward appearances & appreciating what's underneath. What is this a yucky Disney flick or a Monsters episode? The make-up effects aren't that good with the creature having long shaggy hair more than anything else but I guess the makers wanted it to retain certain human characteristics. The acting is OK but nothing special.
The Gift is another oddball Monsters episode that as a series is drifting away more & more from what made some of the earlier episodes so good, namely decent horror stories & good special effects.
Episode twenty two from season two of Monsters this originally aired in the US during May 1990, directed by Jeffrey Wolf this is yet another strange episode of Monsters that I am not quite sure who it was meant to appeal to. It's an odd episode alright with this beast like creature & Jeffrey forming an unlikely but heartfelt relationship, cinema is littered with such ideas where the innocence of youth look past outward appearances & befriend some monster most notably maybe E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982). The Gift is a clumsy & plodding twenty odd minutes of little value, some may like it but I would suspect most won't. The ending is unintentionally funny as a still image of Jeffrey is superimposed over his now beast like face. Overall quite a dull episode that goes for emotion & meaning but just doesn't manage it.
The sets are good here but nothing is done with them & there's no horror here, it's all about the moral message of looking beyond outward appearances & appreciating what's underneath. What is this a yucky Disney flick or a Monsters episode? The make-up effects aren't that good with the creature having long shaggy hair more than anything else but I guess the makers wanted it to retain certain human characteristics. The acting is OK but nothing special.
The Gift is another oddball Monsters episode that as a series is drifting away more & more from what made some of the earlier episodes so good, namely decent horror stories & good special effects.