Film Review: MONSTERMAN (a.k.a. Monsterimies) (2014)

MONSTERMAN (a.k.a. Monsterimies) ***** Finland 2014 Director: Antti Haase 85 mins 

This documentary started shooting in 2010 after Babez For Breakfast was released to document Lordi’s, or predominantly, Mr. Lordi’s struggle to keep the bands momentum going after the hype had died down from their Eurovision success. The director, Antti Haase, was a childhood friend of Tomi Petteri Putaansuu aka Mr. Lordi…. was being the operative word here. This documentary was meant to be an official release from the band but after the final cut both the band and their label dismissed it on the grounds that it is untrue and gives a false image of Mr. Lordi’s private life, yet despite this it is still in circulation so if it was really that bad or falsified surely they would have fought harder to stop its production?
I have to say that I found this film very moving, an emotional roller coaster in fact. It is shot superbly and at no point do you see any band members faces unmasked unless you count Awa but that is, of course, after she has left the band. It shows the wonderful bond Tomi has with his parents and pets, the way he interacts with fans and just how dedicated he is to his monsters and music. It is said in the film that Lordi is nothing without Tomi and that Lordi will end only when Tomi is no longer with us and after watching this I truly believe that statement. I feel sad that Lordi were not happy with this film as it made me relate to them/him even more than I already did in fact I have developed a serious fan girl crush on Mr. Lordi because of this! It shows the hardships, the highs and the lows of living the Rock N Roll dream. By the end of the main feature I was an emotional wreck so to try and calm myself down a bit I decided to watch the extras and out takes which totally lifted my mood. Not only is Tomi a legend in his own lifetime he is a true comic genius. My advice to you is if you were to watch just one of Lordi’s film exploits please, please give this a go!

Review by Sarah Budd