Monos

Monos (2019) is a Colombian-led war thriller directed by Alejandro Landes — watch it online on iFILM. The cast includes Moisés Arias and Julianne Nicholson. Produced across Argentina, Colombia, Germany and four other countries and released through A24, the film announced Landes as one of the most original voices in world cinema.

Eight teenagers armed with rifles guard an American hostage and a cow named Shakira on a mountaintop above the clouds. They call themselves the Monos and answer to a shadowy group known only as the Organization. For a while the setup has the logic of a war game — drills, fire, rituals. Then the hostage escapes. Then the cow dies. Then the group turns on itself.

Landes shoots almost without dialogue; fog, young faces pressed against gun metal, and Mica Levi's raw score do the work. The film won the Special Jury Prize at Sundance and the FIPRESCI Prize at Toronto. Stream Monos online on iFILM.