This page may contain one or more affiliate links, which means that if you purchase a product through that link, I may receive compensation. The links will be identified with the text "affiliate link". Click to learn more.
The 2003 film Monster stars Charlize Theron and Christina Ricci in a gritty portrayal of real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos. Hollywood, always ready to capitalize on tragedy, rushed this flick into production right after Wuornos got the needle. The story follows a street prostitute who starts offing dudes after getting brutally raped, but there’s way more going on beneath the surface.
The most compelling part happens early on when Theron’s Aileen meets Ricci’s character Selby Wall. There is some sad-sack gay bar where Selby’s hanging out looking all desperate and pathetic. In walks Aileen, soaked from the rain, scraping together enough coins for a cheap beer. Next thing you know, these two damaged souls end up at some rinky-dink roller rink. What follows is probably the most tender makeout scene between two smoking hot actresses you’ll ever see.
When I caught this flick in theaters, Charlize Theron wasn’t even on my radar yet. And Christina Ricci? Man, I thought she looked like some weird anime character come to life – those massive eyes and that round face didn’t do her any favors back in her Addams Family days. But here’s the thing about Ricci – that unique look of hers aged like fine wine. Those features that made her stand out as a kid? They just made her hotter as time went on.
Speaking of looks, Theron deliberately made herself look like complete garbage in this movie. We’re talking prosthetics, messed up teeth, the works. But that bold choice to get ugly paid off big time – she snagged both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her trouble. The funny part is, while Theron went full method actor to look exactly like the real Aileen Wuornos, Ricci didn’t even bother changing her hair color to match the real Selby Wall. And let me tell you, the actual Selby? Total butch – we’re talking flannel shirts and crew cuts, the whole nine yards.
Now, you might think Monster was just another Hollywood cash grab. Sure, they threw in some hot lesbian action and rode the coattails of Wuornos’s execution. But don’t let that fool you – this movie brings the goods. The story hits hard, the acting’s top-notch, and it keeps you hooked from start to finish.
Behind the Scenes Drama
The transformation Theron underwent for this role was no joke. She packed on 30 pounds, wore prosthetic teeth, and had her eyebrows thinned to nothing. The makeup team spent hours making her skin look weathered and damaged from years on the street. This wasn’t just some half-assed attempt at looking rough – this was a complete physical overhaul.
Monster didn’t just make waves because of its controversial subject matter. It sparked serious discussions about capital punishment, society’s treatment of sex workers, and the cycle of abuse. The film showed how a person could be both victim and perpetrator, blurring the lines between right and wrong in a way that made audiences uncomfortable.
Critics couldn’t stop raving about Theron’s performance. Roger Ebert called it one of the greatest performances in the history of cinema. The film scored big at independent film festivals before going mainstream and becoming a box office success. It proved that audiences could handle dark, complex stories about morally ambiguous characters.
Cultural Significance
The movie broke new ground in how it portrayed lesbian relationships on screen. Instead of treating it as some cheap thrill for male viewers, the love story between Aileen and Selby felt raw and real. It showed both the tenderness and toxicity of their relationship without judgment or exploitation.
If you haven’t seen this masterpiece yet, do yourself a favor and check it out (Affiliate link). Just don’t expect some feel-good chick flick – this is a dark ride through the underbelly of American society, showing how easily someone can spiral from victim to villain when pushed past their breaking point.
The film remains a powerful testament to how far an actor will go to tell a story truthfully. Theron didn’t just play Aileen Wuornos – she became her, capturing not just her appearance but her mannerisms, her voice, her desperate energy. It’s the kind of performance that comes along once in a generation, proving that sometimes the ugliest roles can be the most beautiful.
Understanding Aileen Wuornos
Wuornos’ childhood was about as pleasant as a root canal without anesthesia, filled with abuse that would make your average therapist need therapy. Her brother Keith was there too, adding his own special brand of dysfunction to the family circus.
Like a twisted entrepreneur, Wuornos found her niche in the world’s oldest profession, working the highways of Florida like they were her personal hunting grounds. She graduated from selling her body to collecting bodies, specifically those of seven unfortunate men: Richard Mallory, David Spears, Troy Burress, Charles Humphreys, Charles Carskaddon, and Walter Antonio. She claimed self-defense, which is like saying you accidentally ate a whole pizza – seven times. The victims’ belongings ended up in pawn shops, because apparently, she never heard of that classic criminal advice: don’t try to sell your victims’ stuff. Nick Broomfield made some documentaries about her, probably because he couldn’t believe someone could be this bad at crime while still managing to do it seven times.
Her final performance before the state gave her the ultimate timeout was pure theater of the absurd. Her last words were about sailing with rocks and coming back like Independence Day with Jesus. She even threw in a movie reference, because why not go out like a B-movie script? “I’ll be back like Independence Day with Jesus, June 6, like the movie, big mother ship and all.” Spoiler alert: she hasn’t come back yet, but maybe the mother ship is running on Florida time.
The media couldn’t get enough of her story. “Monster” turned her life into Oscar bait, and someone even thought, “Hey, you know what this serial killer story needs? A comic book adaptation.” Because nothing says “true crime” like speech bubbles and dramatic panels. Her relationship with Tyria Moore was like a dark rom-com gone horribly wrong. The mental health professionals diagnosed her with borderline personality disorder and antisocial personality disorder, which is like saying water is wet and fire is hot.
Wuornos became the poster child for how a perfect storm of childhood trauma, mental illness, and society’s collective shoulder-shrug can create a hurricane of horror. Her execution in 2002 was the final chapter in a life story that reads like a cautionary tale written by someone with a really dark sense of humor. She went from abused child to highway predator, from victim to victimizer, proving that sometimes the monsters aren’t hiding under the bed – they’re driving down I-95 with a loaded gun and a sob story.
Her legacy lives on in true crime circles, where armchair psychologists debate whether she was a victim of circumstance or a cold-blooded killer who played the victim card. The truth, like most things in life, probably lies somewhere in the murky middle, like a gas station hot dog – you’re never quite sure what you’re getting, but you know it’s not good for you.
The whole saga serves as a grim reminder that reality is often darker than fiction, and sometimes the scariest monsters are the ones who look just like us. Wuornos’ story continues to fascinate people, probably because it hits that sweet spot between tragedy and horror that makes us feel better about our own lives. After all, no matter how bad your day is going, at least you’re not a serial killer who thinks Jesus is coming back in a spaceship.
Her story remains a dark chapter in American crime history, proving that truth is not only stranger than fiction but sometimes more twisted too. In the end, Aileen Wuornos became exactly what society expected her to be – a monster. And like all good monster stories, hers continues to haunt us, reminding us that sometimes the scariest path is the one that leads from victim to villain.