If you’re anything like me and are scared of your own shadow for days after watching a scary movie, then the Halloween season definitely comes around each year leaving you more and more puzzled about what to watch to get into the scary spirit. This year, a lot of new and fresh films were released for us, the faint of heart when it comes to traditional scary movies, including Lisa Frankenstein and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and the newest horror-rom-com, Your Monster. These films check the boxes of monsters, fear, and sometimes disturbing images, but thankfully avoid the overtly frightening scenes clearly made to cause persistent dread in the mind of the viewers. Writer and director Caroline Lindy’s Your Monster is no different, starring Melissa Barrera as Laura, an aspiring actress who falls for the monster in her closet. Even thought the concept is a new take on the classic monster story, this isn’t breaking any boundaries, and I often wished it took its ideas about the literal monster a bit further, seeming to forget about him in the third act as they tried to turn the film into something it never was.

Your Monster follows Laura (Barrera), an aspiring actress who was broken up with by her boyfriend – while she was in the hospital – who promised her the leading role in his newest Broadway show. When she returns to her childhood home, she meets the monster in her closet, Monster (Tommy Dewey), where despite their rough start, the two begin a sweet friendship. As Laura tries to get her ex back and take back the leading role that was promised to her, and Monster helps her to rebuild her shaken confidence, the two being experiencing feelings that go beyond their friendship.

Right off the bat, this new take on the rom-com feels fresh. Asking, what if the monster in your closet, the you knew was there when you were growing up, was actually real? And now that you have moved away, your spaces have become his, and he is not looking for a roommate now that you want to come home. This cool look at what could be called an “enemies-to-lovers” story is perfectly timed with the Halloween season, giving the romantic-at-heart something to watch that still involves monsters, but looks at how their isolation could impact their romantic relationships.

All of the above to say, this falls apart quite quickly at the end of the second act and all throughout the third. The film becomes less of a rom com between the monster and his new house guest, and more of a “girl tries to get back at her ex” story, with some romance sprinkled in, that seems to hit its peak far too early in the film. Once Laura and her monster have their classic falling out at the end of the second act, Monster becomes fully removed from the story. It then becomes a story so entrenched in Laura and her ex’s past, that I seemed to forget that monster was the main love interest of the story. Even thought he helped Laura gain her confidence in the theatre again, there was little that he did that was specific to him being a monster that stood out, causing me to almost completely forget about his existence as soon as he wasn’t on screen.

There are some funny moments here that really emphasized that Laura was in love with a literal monster. They also used his monster characteristics in some unique ways to help him help Laura get her confidence back, and embrace her rage within. But overall, with the unfocussed nature of the story, being far too involved with the ex’s story and Laura and Monster’s relationship developing far too quickly, I struggled to see if the monster part was needed at all. It is unfortunate that it seemed like they really did not use this aspect to their full advantage. Other than the small moments where Monster’s monstrous traits were being used to advance their characters, for the most part, if Monster was replaced with a human, I can’t see the story being much different, causing me to question whether the monster part was fully fleshed out at all. His name literally being “Monster”, is a cute and funny in joke, but definitely highlights his character not having much of an arc, and Laura not having one outside of her ex.

It sucks to always be comparing films to others previously released, but it is hard not to compare Your Monster to Lisa Frankenstein. Both released in 2024, and both taking monsters (or their stories) that we are so familiar with and presenting them in a new way to modern audiences. Lisa Frankenstein was released near Valentines day this year, and tells the love story between teenager Lisa and a reanimated victorian corpse. Where Your Monster fails at making the titular Monster the most important part of the story to our leading Laura, Lisa Frankenstein takes the comedy of its story, the fact of a teen girl falling in love with a living corpse, and goes all the way with it. It recognizes how silly it is, but still takes its love story seriously, resulting in a film that feels like all the characters actually had thought put into them. What we then see is a campy, fun love story rooted in the most absurd ideas, which unfortunately can’t be said for Your Monster‘s underdeveloped characters and unfocussed storyline.

Your Monster could be a good choice for those looking for Halloween Horror film that is any thing but scary. But for those looking for a love story between a monster and a human, maybe this isn’t the place to go searching. While it starts off strong, Your Monster struggles from having a horribly underdeveloped titular monster and leading woman, as well as an unfocussed plot that will leave viewers wondering, what was the reason for the monster being in the story at all? Which is definitely not a good thought to have after watching a film literally titled, Your Monster.

Your Monster is now playing in theatres across Canada.