AtoZ2018 - U is for ... #MovieMonsters #AtoZChallenge

U is for ... Undefined

We have another theme within a theme day today. This is for all the monsters I wanted to include, but which are not specifically named within the film they star in. They may actually have names, but I don't know what they are :).

Scariness Rating

The little skulls by their name are my scariness rating as to how monstrous and scary I think the creatures are when seen in their films.

•  1 skull (not scary at all) - 5 skulls (very scary)
•  and there is a special rating for a few - 5 red skulls (utterly terrifying)

Pitch Black

So these beasties are really nasty and only come out in the dark. They live on a remote planet that has three suns and phases where it is in perpetual daylight and then perpetual darkness for periods of time. During the daylight phase they live underground, and when it gets dark they come out and feast.

In Pitch Black a passenger freighter crash lands on their planet. All is mostly okay to begin with, although the odd survivor vanishes when they stray close to underground tunnels. However, once the sound and smell hunters come out in the dark, all bets are off.

These are predators of the first order, making them great monsters.

Slither

These slug like creatures are alien parasites and you're okay as long as they can't get inside you. Keeping your mouth shut is key if they swarm you.

These parasites arrived on a meteorite and first turn one human into their puppet by infecting him and taking over his mind. He then infects his girlfriend and uses her as an incubator for more of the parasites. These then get inside other people and take them over, turning them into more puppets for the aliens.

In the end many of the infected start melding into one huge creature as they continue to mutate. And once infected there is no hope for the victims.

These are nasty, nasty monsters and this is a film that will make your skin crawl. The thing is, it's also a comedy and it's just too good not to watch :).

Deepstar Six

I remember seeing this on VHS when I was at uni. This monster is no alien, it is a cave dwelling super predator, something like a crab, that has evolved in a closed eco system at the bottom of the ocean. When an explosion opens its cave to the outside is when trouble starts.

The crew of the DeepStar Six, an experimental US Naval deep sea environment, then have the fight the monster as it decides they are either a threat or lunch.

This monster is a natural creation, and it's acting on instinct, but that doesn't stop it being deadly, with a bit that can go through reinforced deep sea suit armour.

Dark Angel aka I Come in Peace

Now this guy is bad to the bone. He's an intergalactic drug dealer played by Matthias Hues (and looking him up on Wikipedia he does actually have a name, Talec - but I never picked that up from the movies, so I shall continue :)). Unfortunately for us earthlings, his chosen drug is "Barsi" which is created from endorphins found in the human brain.

To get to these he stabs human's in the forehead, injects them with heroine and sucks out the resulting chemicals from their brains.

All he cares about are his profits and he's willing to kill as many humans as he can to make them. He's super strong and hard to kill, which makes him all the more dangerous.

The Host

The Host is a fantastic South Korean monster movie.

The monster is an amphibious mutation created by toxic chemicals flushed into the river by an American military pathologist a few years before.

For a while it lives out of sight, but then it starts to leave the river to attack people and eat them. It is huge and very fast and drags its catches off to its lair to eat later, whether they are dead or still alive. It also carries a deadly virus - maybe.

Seemingly immune to bullets it is a monster of the first order.

This is a film with a great plot, great effects and a very good cast. Just be ready for subtitles, because that's always the best way to watch foreign films.

The Thing

Okay, so now we have a five red skull monster. This one gives me the creeps and the movie still scares the hell out of me when I watch it.

The Thing is an alien. It was in a space ship that crashed in Antarctica and was frozen in the permafrost, but it did not die. When it was unfrozen by a Norwegian team of scientists it regenerated and came back to life.

It is a parasitical entity and every part of it is alive of itself, so even blood can turn into a whole creature eventually. Only fire can destroy it. What is worse is that is absorbs those it attacks, learning all they know and gaining the ability to form itself into a perfect copy of any animal or human.

One of the most famous scenes is the head crab. When it is discovered and its body burned, the head splits off and escapes by itself. Have a clip - but be warned, it's gruesome.

The Relic

In the Relic we have another creature that has a taste for humans. This one is actually a mutated human created by the ingestion of a fungus and it needs hormones from other humans.

Unfortunately for its victims, this involves ripping open their skulls to get at their hypothalamus.

It is a huge chimera with DNA from various creatures, including reptiles and it is totally focused on getting what it needs. It is incredibly strong and doesn't seem to care a lot about bullets.

The Relic is a great movie if you like monster based horror. It's from 1997 so the effects are a little dated, but it's so well filmed it doesn't matter. Well worth a watch.

Q: So which of the monsters would you least like to meet in a dark alley? Are there any other monsters I should add to the 'undefined' list?

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