DelilahKaufman

Prof.ScottCooper
FilmintheAgeofAnxiety
July232015
HowMonsterMoviesGotBetterPost911
ThemonstermoviehasbeenatraditionalstapletoHollywoodfordecadesgoingallthe
waybacktothelikesof
Godzilla
,thedepictionofkaiju(Japaneseformonster,butusedalmost
exclusivelyforgiantmonsters)incinemahasnevergrownunpopularandhasalwaysbroughtin
anaudience
.
Ofcourse,withit,theresalsoacertainexpectationformonsterfilms.Theyre
neverexactlyspectacular,alwaysborderontheedgeofcheesy,andtheirbestqualityisusually
theiruseofspecialeffects.Overtheyears,however,theyveseemedtoincreaseinquality:there
aremanyamonstermoviethathavereceivedexceptionalreviewsfromcritics,andthatpraise
mainlystemsnotonlyfromtheterrorofitsrespectivemonster(s),butalsofromitswriting.The
waythecharactersbehaveintheirmonsterriddensituationperhapsstemsfromarealworld
basis,anditmakessensethatthatreactioncouldbecomparabletoactualtragedies.
Oneofthebiggestdisastersinrecenthistoryis,ofcourse,9/11.Terroristsintheirown
rightareakindofmonster,andthelargescaleattacktheyunleashedontoNewYorkCityand
thePentagonislikeareallifemonsterflick.Agoodfilmwilldrawonreality,ifonlytomake
itselfmorerelatabletoitsaudienceoldermonstermoviesarentnecessarilytryingtobe
relatable,theyrejusttryingtoentertainandmakemoney.Modernmonsterfilmshavefound
theirfootinginmakingthemselvesrelatabletoactualtragedy,andsoitmakessensethatthe
gototragedywouldbetheattacksof9/11.Fromit,theymaycreatethemesandinspirationthat

areeasilycomparabletotheattacks,perhapsintentionaltocreateanallegory,ormaybeeven
accidentallybutasaresultof9/11havingsuchanimpact,thatitisalmostinevitabletonot
drawfromitatall.
Thefirstmajormonsterfilmoftheearly2000swasStevenSpielbergslooseadaptation
of
WaroftheWorlds
(2005),starringTomCruise.ColbyD.Williamsdescribesascenefromthe
filminhisessay
Reading9/11in21stCenturyPostApocalypticHorrorFilms
:
Rayandhischildrenemergefromanabandonedhomeahomeinwhichtheysought
refugethepreviousnightonlytofindadestroyedcommercialairlinerthathascrashed
intotheadjacentstreet.Thesideofthefuselagehasbeenrippedopen,andeerily,many
ofthebodiesoftheunfortunatepassengersarenowheretobeseen.Theenginelaysinthe
street,completelydissectedfromthewing.Ofcourse,imagesofplanecrashescropup
timeandtimeagaininpost9/11apocalyptichorrorfilms.Despitethenumerousvisual
allusionstothe9/11terroristattacks,themostexplicitreferenceinSpielbergsremake
comesintheformofasinglequoteutteredbyRaysdaughter,Rachel,whofrighteningly
asksiftheterroristsareresponsibleforgruesomelykillingeveryoneintheirpathas
theycontinuetochasethemawayfromNewYorkCity.(Colby,
Reading9/11
)
Amajorthemeinmonstermovies(andinalotofapocalypticfilms,forthatmatter)istheinitial
confusionandunknownmanyofafilmscharactersexperiencewhentheyrebeingattacked.
Itsnotonlyarelatablescaretactic,itactuallyhelpsbuildupaplotandgettheaudienceexcited
forwhatstocome.The1998remakeof
Godzilla
,forthatmatter,lacksinthatbuildupand
jumpsstraightintothatterrifyingmonsteractionitsprobablythereasonwhythefilmbombed
andisrememberedasadud.

WaroftheWorlds
chosetoutilizethatrealworldfearofnotknowinganduseditasa
plotdeviceColbycitesTomCruisesdaughterwonderingiftheterroristsareresponsibleforthe
horrortheyreexperiencing,ratherthanaliens.Itsanactualthingthathashappenedwithreal
eventsafter9/11.Forexample,the2003Northeastblackout,whichoccurredafter9/11,leftalot
ofpeoplewonderingifterrorismwasthecause.Anarticlein
TheNewYorkTimes
describedthe
initialresponsetotheblackout:WhenpowerwentoutacrossvastpocketsoftheNortheast
yesterday,theNewYorkPoliceDepartmentinitiallyrespondedasitwouldtoamajorterrorist
attack,officialssaidyesterday.AspecialcommandcenterintheBronxwasactivated,police
helicoptersandharborunitsincreasedpatrols,thepoliceineachboroughbegantooperateas
independentdepartmentsandheavilyarmedteamsweredeployedtopotentialtargets.Of
course,itwasquicklydiscoveredthatitwasafailureinpartsofthepowergrid,ratherthan
terrorism(Rashbaum,
RespondingtoaBlackout
).Theblackoutoccurredjustundertwoyears
after9/11,whensuchafearwasunderstandable
WaroftheWorlds
cameouttwoyearsafter
that,andthatfearwasstillquiterelevant.KirkHoneycuttof
TheHollywoodReporter
calledthe
filmtoorealisticforitsowngood,citingthatwhilereferencing9/11enhancestheplot,itsa
somewhattackyuseforit(Honeycutt,
WaroftheWorlds
).
AmoresleeperapproachandalessHollywoodglorifiedmonsterflickwithfurther9/11
imagerywasMattReevess
Cloverfield
,whichcameoutin2008andexploredagroupoffriends
tryingtogetoutofManhattanafteracreatureattacksthecity.Afoundfootagefilm,themovie
wasshotasthoughsomeonewasrecordingallitseventsonacamcorder,rightdowntotheshaky
footage,occasionallybadaudio,anddarkorobscuredvisualslikeanactualpersoninthat

situationmightexperienceit.AnnaleeNewitzof
io9
likens
Cloverfield
simageryto9/11inthis
description:
Earlyin
Cloverfield
,whenthemonsterfirstattacksNewYork,weseenothingofthe
giantbeastonlythedestructionit'sleavingbehind.Asbloodiedpeoplestumblefrom
thewreckageofleaningskyscrapers,dazedandcoveredinathicklayerofdust,one
cannothelpbutrecallthefirst,terrifyingimagesthatleakedfromNewYorkafterthe
WorldTradeCenterwashit.Mostofitcamefromshaky,amateurfootage.Likewise,
Cloverfield
isshottolooklikeitcomesfromahandheldcameradraggedaroundbya
groupofrichtwentysomethingsfleeingthewreckageofaparty.So
Cloverfield
isn'tjust
reenactingtheattacks.It'sreenactingTVnewsimagesoftheattackstoo.(Newitz,
NevermindtheMonster
)
Newitzsarticle,boldlytitled
NevermindtheMonster
Cloverfield
IsAllAbout9/11
,scrutinizes
Cloverfield
asakindofallegoricaldepictionoftheattacks.Eventhoughitscenterpieceisagiant
monster,forthemajorityofthefilm,wedontseeititsonlyattheendthatwegetagoodview
ofthecreatureasitdevoursoneoftheprotagonists(andcamcorderoperator)headon.Jessica
Wakemanofthe
HuffingtonPost
writesaboutthefilmsgreatestsimilarityto9/11:the
confusion,thenotknowingforwhatseemslikeages,andwhatitsreallyliketobeinacity
duringanattack.Shewrites,Thefirst45minutesof
Cloverfield
istheclosestIthinkIcangetto
showingsometimeelsewhat9/11waslikeformeonanemotionallevel.
Cloverfield
nailswhat
thatmorningfeltlike:theconfusionatfirst,andthenfearoverwhelmsandallyoucanthink
aboutisthepossibilityofdyingandneedingtoescapebygettingoutoutoutbutwherecanyou
gobecausethesubwaysandtrainsaren'trunning?(Wakeman,
OnCloverfield
).Throughoutthe

film,therearemanymoremomentsakinto9/11theevacuationofManhattanbywayofbridge
(asWakemancomments,justlikeduringtheattacks,thesubwaysareshutdownwhichthe
filmscharactersactuallyenduptraversingthroughonfoot),imageryoftoppledbuildings,anda
steadyvisualatmosphereofdustanddarkness.Theresasceneinwhichacharacterliterally
explodesinamilitaryquarantineasaresultofabitefromoneoftheparasitesthatfalloffthe
monsteritsalmostasifshesasuicidebomber.
Cloverfield
maynothaveintentionallytriedto
havesomanyallusionsto9/11,butasAnnaleeNeiwitzinterpretsit,itmightaswellbe.Minus
themonster,
Cloverfield
basicallyisallabout9/11.
Historically,thecreationoftheHollywoodmoviemonsteriscreditedto
Gojira
,which
wasrereleasedin1956as
Godzilla
.
Gojira
,inadditiontointroducingtheworldsfirstfamous
citydestroyingcreature,isalsorememberedtobeJapansreactiontothebombingsofHiroshima
andNagasakiduringWorldWarII.Inareviewforthe2014remakein
Telegraph
,TimMartin
discussedhowtheoriginalfilmwasrememberedversusthewayitwasintendedtobeseen.
Martinwrites,Westernaudienceshavespentmorethanhalfacenturythinkingof
Godzilla
asa
jokedinosaurinarubbersuit,aJapanesetrashcultureKingoftheMonsterslockedinendless
battlewithgiantmoths,dragons,armadillosandskyscrapersizedrobot,butthat[i]tsrosterof
frighteningimagescitiesinflames,overstuffedhospitals,irradiatedchildrenwouldhave
beenalltoofamiliartocinemagoersforwhommemoriesofHiroshimaandNagasakiwerestill
lessthanadecadeold,whileitsscriptposeddeliberatelyinflammatoryquestionsaboutthe
balanceofpostwarpowerandthedevelopmentofnuclearenergy.Martintheorizesthatwhen
Godzilla
wasreleasedintheUnitedStatesinarecutthatcastWesternactorsinarewritten
script,onlykeepingtheactionscenesinvolvingthemonsteritselfthesameAmerican

audienceswerenotawareofthefilmsoriginalbackground(Martin,
WhytheJapaneseOriginal
isNoJoke
).AndbecausethemajorityofWesternaudiencesneverbotheredtodelvedeeperinto
Godzilla
shistory,thatimageofanowoutdated1950smonsteronlysolidifieditselfasajoke.
Americanmadesequelsandremakesof
Godzilla
havenevergarneredhighpraise,andthegenre
becameknownforitsbigeffectsandmediocrestories.
9/11somehowendsupbeingagodsendforthegenre:whiletheinevitabilityofgenius
mighthavestillproducedsuchfilms,theinfluenceoftheattacksshapedthemonstermovie
blockbusterintoamoredignifiedkindoffilmratherthanajoke.Atouchofrealitycanmakea
filmallthemorebetter,becausethatrelatabilitycanmakeafilmbettertoenjoyandmorelikely
tobedeemedgood.Theresaccessibilitytomoreaudiences,whowillbetofollowand
understandthefilmmanyfilmsofthehorrorandsciencefictiongenretendtointroduce
conceptsthatgoovertheviewershead,butifthe
feeling
ofthefilmcanstillgetthrough,the
viewercanstillfollow.Filmsthatincorporatethemesof9/11succeedindoingthat:manythe
Americanviewercanunderstandandrelatetothepainof9/11,andtheycanapplythattowhen
theyrewatchingafilm.
Notallportrayalsof9/11arenecessarilydomestic.Intheirbook
Horrorafter9/11:
WorldofFear,CinemaofTerror
,AvivaBriefelandSamJ.Millerdiscussotherfilmsthatwere
notmadepossiblewithouttheevent,severalofwhichweremadeoutsideoftheUnitedStates.
Theycitea2006SouthKoreanfilm,
TheHost
,asamoviethatwasimpressionableofthe
conspiracalsideoftheattacks:theywrite,
TheHost
[...]portraysboththemilitaryandscientists
representedinthefilmprimarilybyU.S.occupyingforcesandmembersoftheWorldHealth
Organization,respectivelyascruel,hobbledbybureaucracy,eitherstupidorlying,and

neithernecessarynoreffective(BriefelandMillar,
Horrorafter9/11
).Thefilm,whichisused
initschapterasacomparisonagainst
Cloverfield
,isaboutasimilarmonsterthatalsospreadsa
virus.While
TheHost
wasnotnecessarilymadewithAmerican(orevenWestern)audiencesin
mind,severalthingsaboutitmakeitblatantlycomparableto9/11.TheportrayalastheAmerican
governmentasresponsibleisreminiscentofvariousconspiracytheories,thatMiddleEastern
terroristswerenotresponsiblefortheattacksbutourgovernmentthemselves.Theaddedbonus
of
TheHost
smonsterspreadingavirusbringstomindthepost9/11fearsofviralterrorismby
wayofanthraxandotherdiseases.Throughgreedandtheaccesstotoomuchpower,themonster
inthisparticularfilmisnottheforeignotherbutthefamiliarliar.
Otherfilmsofthemidtolate2000sthat,whilenotblatantlyallegoricalinnatureof
9/11,stillincorporatethemesthatcanbetracedbackto9/11asaninspiration.Inhisbook
Post9/11HorrorinAmericanCinema
,KevinJ.Wetmorecites
TheMist
,anadaptationofthe
StephenKingnovellabyFrankDarabont.
TheMist
followsseveralresidentsofasmalltown
trappedinasupermarketafteraviolentthunderstormshroudstheareainaheavymistinit
containslethalcreaturesandlargemonsterswithonlytheintentiontokill.Cabinfeversetsin
andpitstheresidentsagainsteachother,eachofwhomhasdifferentbeliefsandunderstandings
ofwhythemisthasbeenputinplace,whetheritbereligionorparanoiaagainstthegovernment.
WritesWetmore,
Atropofthehorrorfilmisthepersonindenialabouttherealityordepthofthethreat
whichthecommunityfaces.AfterSeptember11,however,thistropeisexpanded,
showingtheunbelieverasmilitantlyandaggressivelyunbelieving,eveninthefaceof
evidencethathe,sheortheyiswrong.Itisnotcoincidentalthat
TheMist
wasmadein

2007,fouryearsintotheIraqwar,althoughFrankDarabonthadplannedonproducingit
muchearlier.Aggressivelyreligiousandnationalistindividualsusethecentralcrisisof
thefilmtopushtheirownagendasandtoattackanyonewhodisagreeswiththem.
(Wetmore,
Post9/11Horror
)
Partofthehorror
TheMist
isnotthemonstersoutsidethesupermarket,butthepeoplewithin.
Themonstersmerelyservesasamediatortogetthetownspeopletoshowtheirtruecolors.After
9/11,thelackofadirectanswerandasolidsolutionagainsttheterroristshadincreasedthe
paranoiawithinthecommoncivilianafterthehorroroftheattacks,whatwaslefttobescaredof
wasunknown.Thesamewayconspiracyroseoutoftheashesof9/11,
TheMist
acknowledges
thatsometimesthebiggestfearistheonewecantunderstandinthiscase,wecant
see
it,and
allthatislefttodoisspeculateuntilitgoestoofar.
Fastforwardto2013:KyleBuchananof
Vulture
wroteanarticletitled
IsItPossibleto
MakeaHollywoodBlockbusterWithoutEvoking9/11?
thatcallsoutthescaleinwhichsaid
filmspresentthemselveswiththemes,story,andvisually.WritesBuchanan,
Suchknowing,referentialobliterationprobablybeganwiththeapocalypticterrorof
2005s
WaroftheWorlds
,inwhichStevenSpielbergatleasthadthedecencytousethe
entiremovieasanallegoryforourfeelingsofpost9/11dreadandhopelessness.Since
then,though,theweightyunderpinningstothosescenesin
WaroftheWorlds
havefallen
awayascitywreckingsummermovieslike
Transformers:DarkoftheMoon
seekonlyto
uptheantefromthedestructionfeaturedinwhicheversummerspectacularcameoutthe
yearbefore.(Buchanan,
Evoking9/11
)

Bigbudgetmovieswilloftenplacethemselvesinfamiliarcities(NewYork,LosAngeles)other
thansmall,unfamiliartownstobetteraccommodateaudiences.Buchanangoesontocriticizethe
decisiontoplaceblockbustersintheselocationsbecausetheyarethesiteofrealworldterror:
filmslike
TheAvengers
and
ManofSteel
takeNewYork(orinthecaseof
ManofSteel
,aNew
YorkinspiredMetropolis)anddestroyit.AsBuchananputsit,itsHollywoodsbadhabitof
[mining]oneoftheworstdaysinAmericanhistoryforaseriesofwowsertrailermoments.
Ofcourse,somemonstermovieshavefaredwellwithouttheinspirationof9/11.Amonth
afterBuchanansarticlewaspublished,GuillermodelToros
PacificRim
wasreleasedto
widespreadacclaim.Thefilmisaboutmonsters(calledkaijus,inanodtotheoriginofmonster
movies)thatemergefromaninterdimensionalportalfoundatthebottomofthePacificOcean.
Theworldunitestofighttheminhumanrunroboticsuits.TashaRobinsonof
TheDissolve
,ina
followuptoKyleBuchanansarticle,praisedthefilmforseekingadifferentpaththanthelikes
of
TheAvengers
and
ManofSteel
.Shecomposedachecklistofwhatmakesitunique:
Pacific
Rim
makestheproblemglobal.Itatleasttriestobeaboutsomethingbesidesvengeanceor
punishment.Itfindsitsiconographyfurtherinthepast.Itacknowledgestheweightof
tragedy,anddoesnttakemassdeathanddestructionlightly(Robinson,
Exploiting9/11
).
RobinsongoesontoagreewithBuchanantheexploitationoftheattackson9/11isoverdone
andlittleold.And,inthecaseof
PacificRim
,itispossibletocreateasuccessfulbigtime
monsterflickthats
good
withoutnecessarilyminingforinspirationfromrealtragedy.
Asofnow,themostrecentHollywoodmonstermovietohavecomeoutis
Godzilla
,in
2014.Ina
NewYorkTimes
reviewoftheremake,A.O.Scottwrites,Peoplearethussomewhat
incidentaltothestory,andtheirfeelingsmostlyfearanddeterminationarelessinteresting

thanthoseoftheancientgiants,whointheirslimy,scaly,computergeneratedmovementsand
expressionsregisterrageandanguishwithanintensitybeyondwhatthehumanscanmuster
(Scott,
StillRadioactive
).Thefilmstillhasthatglobalitythat
PacificRim
chosetoemploy,but
asScottwrites,itissomewhatmediocreandlacksheart.Nothingaboutitparticularlyevokes
9/11,butlike
PacificRim
,thatmightnotnecessarilybeafactor.Itsaremake.Itjustmight
neverhavemeanttobegood.
Therearemanyfactorsthatgointomakingaqualityfilm,buttypically,awellwritten
storywithgoodcharactersanddialoguedoesthetrick.Monstermovieshavealwaysfallen
victimtothemediocritythatHollywoodblockbusterstendtohave,butfindinginfluenceinthe
realworldhasmadethemslightlybetter.Noteverymonstermoviepost9/11evokes9/11,and
justbecauseonemight,doesntnecessarilymeanitsgood.Butitssomething:itschangedthe
game,forcingmoviemakerstorealizethatitispossibletoreallyputqualityintoafilm.Itsmade
moviesmoreaccessibleandrelatabletoaudiences.Astheeffectsgetbetterandtheexplosions
bigger,sodoesthestory.Itcantbeacoincidencethatthisonlyhappenedafter9/11.
Workscited
Buchanan,Kyle."IsItPossibletoMakeaHollywoodBlockbusterWithoutEvoking9/11?"
Vulture.N.p.,13June2013.Web.22July2015.

Briefel,Aviva,andSamJ.Miller.Horrorafter9/11:WorldofFear,CinemaofTerror.Austin:U
ofTexas,2011.Print.

Martin,Tim."Godzilla:WhytheJapaneseOriginalIsNoJoke."TheTelegraph.Telegraph
MediaGroup,15May2014.Web.22July2015.

Robinson,Tasha."InaSummerFilledwithFilmsExploiting9/11Imagery,PacificRimFollows
aDifferentPath."TheDissolve.N.p.,12July2013.Web.22July2015.

Wakeman,Jessica."OnCloverfieldand9/11."TheHuffingtonPost.TheHuffingtonPost.com,21
Jan.2008.Web.22July2015.
Wetmore,KevinJ.Post9/11HorrorinAmericanCinema.NewYork:Continuum,2012.Print.


Williams,ColbyD.,"Reading9/11in21stCenturyApocalypticHorrorFilms."Thesis,Georgia
StateUniversity,2011.http://scholarworks.gsu.edu/english_theses/116