Director John MacLaverty’s 2023 documentary feature, Loch Ness: They Created A Monster, is a love letter to the Scottish Highlands and those who reside there. The film is a beautifully constructed mix of interviews, archival recordings, and contemporary footage, taking audiences on a journey through the modern myth of the Loch Ness Monster and the stories of those who hunt for it.
★★★★✰
The simplistic beauty of Loch Ness: They Created A Monster lies directly in the documentary’s title: this is not a film about the monster, this is a film about the people that cemented its modern mythology. In essence, the film makes viewers question if the monster hunters really cared about Nessie specifically, or if any suggestion of something hiding under their noses would have brought about the same level of egotistical showmanship that befell those once sleepy shores.
The film’s use of archival footage takes viewers back to the heyday of monster hunting at Loch Ness—the 1970s and 1980s, when monster mania hit the UK. A vast majority of this content has never before been widely distributed, allowing for the film to lay its own claim on the narratives of the time, and introduce a new chapter in the folkloric canon of the region.
Viewers can expect to see an incredibly broad host of contributors from every walk of life throughout the film, each as desperate as the next to spot the fabled beast. From a Japanese quest to capture the creature and, a Boston lawyer getting in on the action, to some very welcome interjections from Leonard Nimoy, the documentary uses its varied cast to demonstrate just how broad a reach such a phenomenon can have. The casting choices speak to the global interest that befell the Scottish Highlands during this era, sparking a new form of tourism that boosted the local economy and is still seen today.
The documentary is loosely framed around a following a modern-day Loch Ness Monster coach tour, this tourist-oriented approach creating documentary’s easy and strangely comforting tone. Loch Ness: They Created A Monster uses the iconography of its subject matter as a notch in its tonal belt, building upon this facet and allowing for the entire piece to feel strangely cosy in its content and overall feel through the accessible medium of sight-seeing.
Loch Ness: They Created A Monster does not feel like a broken record, considering how the Loch Ness Monster is such an ingrained part of our cultural imagination. By deciding to focus on the monster hunters, as opposed to the monster itself, the documentary allows audiences to see behind the famous photos, and experience Nessie’s recent history from the perspectives of those who were at the forefront of the action. As we see the monster hunters camping by the shores of the loch, Loch Ness: They Created A Monster depicts their immense dedication, their lives revolving around the simple acts of watching and waiting.
The Verdict
Ultimately, Loch Ness: They Created A Monster uses its platform to consider the importance of cultural and societal storytelling and intrigue in the longevity of mythical creatures. The Loch Ness Monster would be nothing without the eccentric believers and dedicated scientists who were intent on unearthing the truth that lies below those murky waters. Although the film does not shy away from more negative scenarios that occurred during the monster-hunting craze, its message is overwhelmingly cheerful, focussing on the unrelenting power of human curiosity.
Words by Jess Parker
Loch Ness: They Created A Monster is in select cinemas now
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