LAKE MICHIGAN MONSTER: Visually Engaging Homage that’s Boatloads of Fun

Lake Michigan Monster follows Captain Seafield, played by Ryland Brickson Cole Tews – the writer and director of the film – on a mission to avenge the death of his father. He makes a team consisting of weapons specialist Sean Shaugnessy (Erick West), sonar technician Nedge Pepsi (Beulah Peters) and Navy vet Dick Flynn (Daniel Long).

Through a series of attempted missions to kill the monster, we are shown a world full of affectionate homage to B sci-fi films of the 50s and just as wonderfully, to silent comedies, such as the classic Buster Keaton film The Navigator.

Quick Pace and Frequent Humor

Lake Michigan Monster embraces the strangeness of its story by never watering down anything or spending too much time to explain any aspect of the film. The humor of the film comes at such a quick pace, and not a single frame is wasted. Title cards are used to add more comedy to scenes, especially with their wonderfully named missions such as “The Nauty Lady” and “The Master Baiters” being spoken and displayed on screen in a style both nautical and reminiscent of silent films.

Lake Michigan Monster isn’t a very long film, yet feels perfect in its length. The pace is quick and helps the audience feel like they are going on this mad yet beautiful journey. Setting up the story surrounding the different failed attempts to kill the monster works well to highlight the pace and adds more areas to pepper in humor.

Title cards work well to capture an aesthetic, while also offering even more opportunities for the humor of the film to come through. Jokes come at such a fast pace. No moment drags or feels like it doesn’t fit within the film, no matter how strange it might seem.

Cinematography and Capturing The History of Film

Lake Michigan Monster has a unique style that works wonderfully with the film’s flow and homage to past genres and styles of film. The cinematography builds a world that feels like we’re inside a film of the 50s – or 20s at other times – which makes the jokes bringing up attending college in the 2000s that much funnier.

Closer to the end of the film, we are introduced to another world and the characters who come with that. The design of this section of the film brings to mind the mysterious quality of art within Twin Peaks: The Return. This fits perfectly within the black and white underwater world of monsters and ghosts. The ghosts have a design that feels like if Doctor Doom was in Eyes Wide Shut, and I absolutely loved that.

Some shots of characters journeying into the water bring back memories of watching Buster Keaton venture underwater, exploring new aspects of physical comedy. Throughout the film, this style and exploration of movement is captured wonderfully.

As I watched Lake Michigan Monster, I frequently was drawn to the art of each scene and shot composition that put character expressions in the foreground. I enjoyed seeing how different aspects of the plot were captured with the film’s lower budget. The creativity of cinematography and directing make Lake Michigan Monster a beautiful experience. The nonstop jokes – similar to the humor of Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace – kept me engaged and surprised by how far, and to what strange places, the film might go.

Music Captures Tone and Style

Lake Michigan Monster features library music as well as an additional score from Chris Ryan, and the music works perfectly with the film. It helps capture the nautical tone of the film, while also having moments reminiscent of B sci-fi music and silent film scores.

When the action in Lake Michigan Monster is quick and following its characters through a visual maze of grain and light, the music feels more reminiscent of silent films, where the tones play along with the exaggerated actions of the character.

Music brings Lake Michigan Monster up to another level, creating a film that is enjoyable to witness and pulls you down into the briny waters of its unique vision and world. The music also works well with the film’s pace. The film never slows down too much, nor is it dragged down by a score with less energy than what is needed for a specific moment.

Eager to Fully Explore Their Premise

What makes Lake Michigan Monster such an entertaining film is its eagerness to always go far with the premise, and never back down from telling a joke, no matter how silly it may seem. Lake Michigan Monster feels affectionate and fully engaged in its comedy, which works better than films blending genres and keeping one secluded or less intentional than the other.

Lake Michigan Monster fully engages with and respects its tone. Jokes range from the simple repetition of a character’s full name to visual moments like a stack of ghosts falling over in a perfectly straight line like someone pushed down a stick. The film is filled to the brim (brine) with wonderfully nautical and sometimes awkward comedy.

While watching Lake Michigan Monster, I was reminded of the experiences I’ve had with the films of Guy Maddin. There’s a similar visual style and beauty here that I previously felt while watching Keyhole and The Saddest Music in the World. If the style of those films interests you, Lake Michigan Monster might be right up your alley, like it was for me.

Conclusion

Lake Michigan Monster is an energetic, humorous, and beautifully shot independent film that expertly captures the world of B films, comedies of the silent era in a wonderfully nautical way. The light and shadows help each moment feel connected to the world of lighthouses and monsters while feeling unique in its comedic voice. Ryland Brickson Cole Tews does great work as writer, director, and actor. He brings light and energy to his character and performs the comedy in a way reminiscent of the silent era, which works wonderfully in the ridiculous and hilarious film he has crafted.

Do you like nautical films, and do you like the idea of setting a sea monster movie in and around Lake Michigan? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Lake Michigan Monster is available on Arrow Video Channel in the UK and US.

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