Ocean City Monster Building

Ocean City Monster Building is an unsolved mystery period piece, blending the tough no-nonsense city officer with the small-town secretiveness that creates its own case to be solved.

The film uses a lot of unique cuts and angles to help tell its story. From the upside-down bedroom flip, the café scene, to the kitchen shot during the break-in, we are treated to unexpected visuals that take us out of the usual movie watching comforts. While not all are successful (the camera retreat in the house and the chase scene aren't as smooth as others), they add to the depth of the story that is unraveling as Aida gets deeper into the case.

As the film progresses, I do struggle with the lack of highs and lows from many of the characters. This becomes even more apparent when we get to Amy Miller, whose performance by itself feels like a genuine guttural response; but against the mild demeanor of the previous characters seems over the top. Similarly, Meghan's voice-over brings a spark of energy that has been missing from Aida, the Sheriff, Sally, or her mom. As we get to the turbulent third act, it is a big jump in characterization as these individuals begin to release these emotions.

While I do enjoy many of the monologues, they seem to slow down the progress of the scene versus punctuating them. I believe it's because it comes so unexpectedly; especially Jake Miller's in the police station. Sally and Amy also seem to break the fourth wall and deliver theirs almost detached from the scene partner. I'm not sure how to integrate these more smoothly, but doing so would definitely increase the delivery impact.

Finally, I'd like to see some of the "surprise" elements kept until later in the film. We're convinced very early on that the Mayor was guilty, so the revelations of the pictures, or the mysterious acting class, or Sally's history or the call from the census bureau don't have the same reveal weight as if we were still wondering what could have happened.

The good: stellar performances by a diverse cast. No matter how bad the dialogues are, they just won't give up and I kind of enjoy watching it. In some moments I would even say the acting successfully saved the film from disaster.

The bad: a script filled with tropes and no originality, camera shots failed to provide even a complete frame of the characters, cheap production value, little effort was made to make it looks like a period piece, sound is a big issue with muffled unintelligible dialogue and noticeable background noises. The editing is choppy and not very smooth.

The ugly: I know the coloring is a choice but it's a horrendous choice, one of the ugliest film I have ever seen. The dialogues are so pretentious and downright nonsensical I had to mute it at times in order to stomach through the entire film.

Ocean City Monster Building requires significant rework and improvements in all aspects of its filmmaking. The story is underdeveloped, lacking depth and complexity that could make it more engaging for the audience. The technical aspects of the film, such as camera movement, framing, blocking and dialogue, are badly executed, hindering the audience's ability to fully immerse themselves in the story. The shoddy camera work and off-frame shots can be disorienting, detracting from the film's overall quality. Similarly, the writing is often predictable, lacking nuance and subtlety further diminishing the film's already poor quality. The sound in the film is inconsistent, with noticeable background noises at times and muffled dialogue that is difficult to understand, this takes away from the viewing experience and makes it challenging to fully engage. The locations used in the film are underutilized and the sparse use of props added to the lackluster production value. The performances by the actors are the only saving grace, some of the monologue performances alone is worth the ticket of admission. Go see it for the brilliant performances by a diverse ensemble cast.

Watched it at a festival, the film is rather unique in its style and in its narrative, which experiments with the detective/mystery genre. Considering the mobility of the camera, the blocking and staging was not bad. Interesting script, yet many times the dialogues are too unnatural. The cinematography is very good I liked the aspect ratio, although some shots distract and feel unnecessarily unconventional. The performances, in times of high dramatic, are unrealistic due to the script; during more chill moments, they're pretty good. Although it has many locations but, it could have used the setting more creatively and experimented more with it. The pacing is hard to rate because it deliberately does not follow the conventional rhythm of a film of this genre. But I feel like the film might not be completely sure of where it stands between following the mystery and exploring the characters. The sound design is really good. The use of the radio and TV are really good.

Ocean City Monster Building is a low-budget sci-fi horror film that tells the story of a massive sea monster attacking an apartment building in the fictional coastal town of Ocean City, USA. We follow our protagonist one of the building's occupants and his struggle to survive the attack, rescue his estranged daughter and possibly find a way to defeat the monster before it destroys the entire city. Inspired by the classic Japanese Kaiju films of the 50s and 60s, Ocean City Monster Building rely on practical effects including special makeup, creature suits, animatronic puppets and miniature models instead of CGI creating a nostalgic yet engaging film.

While I'm in support of amateur filmmakers doing everything they can to tell their stories and make their movies. This movie Ocean City completely fails to deliver a coherent and engaging film while making you suffer through it's utterly amateur filmmaking. The direction feels aimless and lacks any clear vision, resulting in a messy final product. The shaky handheld camera work is unremarkable and fails to capture any sense of atmosphere, leaving the viewer feeling disconnected from the story. The lighting is also poor and feels inconsistent throughout the film.

The main characters the detective and the girl are both underdeveloped and lacks any depth, making it difficult for anyone to care about their struggles. The acting is void of any meaningful emotions and hindered by the poorly constructed script which is so unnatural and robotic that I'm seriously wondering if ChatGPT wrote it. And the pacing of the film is all over the place, at times sluggish and slow, other times confusing and overwhelming, making it difficult to maintain attention. The lack of suspense throughout this mystery thriller is also disappointing, failing to deliver on any satisfying conclusion. I can't believe I paid $2.99 to watch this hot garbage.