Monster (2003) – What Really Happened to This Horror Movie?

When we think of monsters on this channel, most of the time its from a fictional, mythical, or legendary monster like the Mummy, Wolfman, Dracula, or Frankenstein’s Monster. On this specific show, however, a Monster can take on a whole new meaning. I joke that half of these episodes will be about reportedly true possessions and while that will probably hold fast, there is another type of monster we have discussed a few times. The guy that loosely inspired the Scream killings, Henry from Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, and today’s subject Aileen Wuornos. The movie made about her is literally called Monster and put director Patty Jenkins and star Charlize Theron, at least in terms of her being seen as an A list actor who can actually act, on the map. It’s a straightforward telling of a murderer that of course adds nuance and even audience empathy to the cinematic version. It has the vaunted “Based on a true story” moniker slapped on to it but how accurate is the tale of the tape vs the real events? Be careful who you pick up hitchhiking as we find out what REALLY happened to Monster.

Relative unknown Patty Jenkins had only 2 short films to her name when she decided to write a screenplay based on Aileen Wuornos who was one of the most notorious female serial killers of the 20th century. She wrote the script in only seven weeks and then was on the hunt for who could play her characters. Even though the movie came out AFTER Wuornos was executed, Jenkins was able to speak with her and was even given access to hundreds of letters. This was a huge get for the production and writing as Wuornos was usually very uncooperative. To play this powerful character, Jenkins had a few options in mind. She screen tested Kate Winslet, Heather Graham, Brittany Murphy, and Kate Beckinsale. Reese Witherspoon made her intentions known that she wanted to play the role, but the decision came down to a fateful late-night movie that was playing when Jenkins woke up.

Seeing Charlize Theron’s performance in The Devil’s Advocate sealed the deal for Jenkins and Theron was taken aback but very excited to play the part. She would even founded Denver and Delilah Films to help produce the movie. This would pay off in spades as the movie was made for 1.5 million and brought back a whopping 64 million at the box office. Mix that in with rave reviews and Oscar gold for Charlize and I’d say that was a great decision. While this movie is horrifying, Theron has other traditional horror movies to her name like the previously mentioned Devils Advocate, The Astronaut’s Wife, and her first movie was one of those damned straight to video Children of the Corn sequels. Oh, and Prometheus.

For the role of Wuornos’s girlfriend and unwitting pawn, Kate Hudson was originally offered the role but turned it down. Cristina Ricci was cast and she had already done a good job shedding her child acting perception with movies like Buffalo 66, The Opposite of Sex, and Prozac Nation, but this movie showed her ability to act. It didn’t garner the same awards as Theron but Roger Ebert called it brilliant. Other horror under her belt includes Sleepy Hollow, Bless the Child, Cursed, and After Life. Of course, she is also an icon as Wednesday Addams in her two live action portrayals. The rest of the cast is no slouch either with Bruce Dern, Lee Tergesen, Scott Wilson, and Pruitt Taylor Vince in smaller roles. Heck, we even get none other than Kane Hodder as an undercover agent. It was released on Christmas Eve in 2003 and as stated killed it for audiences and critics alike.

The movie opens with Aileen narrating about her early life and her dreams. On the screen we see a far less positive portrayal of Aileen’s troubled home and school live followed by prostitution at a young age. It cuts to present day Aileen who has a few dollars in one hand and a gun in the other thinking of ending it all. She ends up in a gay club to get a beer and meets Selby Wall. She says she has a pressure washing business but is visibly offended by Selby’s companionship and makes her pay for their booze. They end up having a great time together and close the place down. Aileen has nowhere to go and ends up staying at Selby’s house before she ruses out in the morning when Selby’s family almost catches them. Aileen agrees to meet up with Selby at the Moonlight later that day.

(Factometer 50%) The movie’s goal is to show just before Aileen went on her killing spree all the way up to her capture and incarceration but it does have hints of what happened to her beforehand. Aileen was born in Michigan in 1956 but never met her father who was put in jail for life and hung himself while there. Aileen and her brother Keith were abandoned and left with their grandparents who unfortunately were both alcoholics and had other problems as well. As early as the age of 11 she began trading sexual favors for food, money, and cigarettes and even began having intimate relations with her own brother. Her own grandfather would also assault her in the same way as well as beat her and eventually kicked her out of the house after she became pregnant from a family friend. She gave birth in a women’s home and gave the child up for adoption. Just like the movie states, she moved throughout the country supporting herself via prostitution. There was a marriage that we never heard about and a lot of other incidents before she finally met 24-year-old Tyria Moore who was a hotel maid. This is who is portrayed as Selby in the movie, but Moore was very private and didn’t want anything to do with the movie.

Aileen heads to a storage unit that she is living out of and is fed by Thomas who may be her only real friend besides Selby. The two meet up at a roller-skating rink where Aileen tells Selby all about her prostitution and what men want. They skate together and eventually kiss but someone staying with Selby sees them. Aileen turns some tricks to get money after promising Selby she would see her later and eventually is picked up at 545 pm by one last john. His name is Vincent Corey and instead of just sex, he violently assaults her. Selby waits for Aileen who never comes, and Aileen is able to turn the tables and kill Vincent and take his car. This ends up being the first victim of her spree and completely changes the trajectory of her life.

(Factometer 50%) There is quite a bit in this section that is true to life. Wuornos did live out of a storage shelter for a little bit but while it’s only seen once in the movie, she actually stored some of her victims’ items there before she sold them. Selling the belongings to a pawn shop and having her thumb print taken played a part in her eventual capture. While Aileen was a habitual liar and it was hard to tell fact from fiction from her, its entirely possible that her first victim, real name Richard Charles Mallory, did assault her as she says. He was convicted in the state of Maryland for a similar crime as Wuornos stated happened to her.

Aileen makes it back to Selby and apologizes for not meeting up sooner. Eventually the two leave together and live out of a hotel while dating. They go out, spending the money Aileen made from her work as well as what she stole from the body of her first victim and the two are very much in love. Aileen talks about the baby she had to give up and tries to get a real job from various companies who all turn her down as she has no experience. One man in particular shuts her down in a really rough way which sets her off. She lies to Selby about the experience and about having other opportunities lined up before she is picked up by a cop who makes her pay him back for letting her go in a specific way. She sees a newspaper that shows a picture of the man she killed and that the police have no leads. Aileen Tells Selby what she did because Selby thinks she is using her and says she is going to take care of them.

(Factometer 25%) The two stayed in a hotel and spent money together all-around Florida. It is unknown if Aileen actually attempted employment at the places she claimed because she was a pathological liar and much of her version of things could be hard to prove one way or the other. The police did find the body of the first victim and didn’t have any leads on who the murderer was early on.

Aileen continues he work as a prostitute but now in addition to money, she has made it her mission to kill these men and sees them all as violent monsters. Her second victim is Will followed by a few more. She and Selby go out but have an incident at a restaurant. Selby, who feels isolated and always worrying about Aileen goes out and makes a group of friends at the gay club from the first part of the movie. Aileen is worried at home and is upset that Selby took a car that could be identified but calms down and tries to understand. They go to a carnival where Selby hangs out with friends and mostly ignores Aileen until they ride the Ferris wheel together. The next day while Selby is driving, the car crashes and two elderly witnesses see the pair run off.

(Factometer 50%) Director Patty Jenkins agreed to change Tyria Moore’s name and likeness for her participation. Much of Selby’s character in the movie, apart from being in a relationship with Wuornos was made up to give Ricci more to do. The two did have incidents like the restaurant scene but Moore was a bit of a recluse and didn’t make friends easily. The car being crashed and the two being identified by eyewitnesses is fairly accurate with a woman named Rhonda Bailey seeing the two women abandon the car, a car owned by one of Aileen’s victims, and giving a description to the police.

Selby justifiably freaks out that the cops are coming for them, but Aileen convinces her that they are fine and continues to kill men that pick her up including a retired cop. She has Selby convinced that the killings are self defense and justified. Aileen goes back out and is picked up by a genuinely nice man who isn’t looking for sex. Because Aileen is so self-convinced that all of these men are trying to assault her, she still kills him even when he begs not to. The Police are in hot pursuit now after having a sketch and a general idea of who the two women are. Aileen sends Selby home on a bus to protect her and ends up getting taken into custody by two bounty hunters, one played by Kane Hodder. Aileen confesses that she alone was involved in the murders and during the trial, Selby testifies for the prosecution. The trial ends in a verdict of guilt and a sentence of death by lethal injection.

(Factometer 90%) Wuornos would end up killing 7 men including a retired chief of police, similar to that in the film. She was also arrested in a biker bar in real life similar to what is seen on film and Moore was also brought in to testify so she could save her own name. She was ok with Moore’s seeming betrayal as she truly believed that what they had was love. Wuornos was convicted of 6 counts of murder and sentenced to death where she was killed via lethal injection on October 9th, 2002.

Patty Jenkins changed a handful of details but kept a lot of the tone of Wuornos and her crimes true. Who she was, what she did, and how her life ended were all captured faithfully and Theron more than earned her Oscar for her brilliant and dour portrayal of the serial killer. The movie is a must watch and one of the great depictions of a famous killer ever filmed. Watch the movie and then check out any of the multitude of books and documentaries on the true Florida Monster.

A couple of the previous episodes of What Really Happened to This Horror Movie? can be seen below. To check out the other shows we have on the JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channel, head over to the channel – and subscribe while you’re there!