Girl vs. Monster is a
Disney Channel Original Movie that premiered on October 12, 2012. The film stars
Olivia Holt as Skylar, a teenage girl who is incapable of feeling fear. The plot kicks off with Skylar and her friends preparing for the ultimate Halloween Party, where she is supposed to sing with a local rock band headed by
Love Interest Ryan Dean. Unfortunately, that plan gets derailed when her parents tell her she isn't allowed out on Halloween. When Skylar decides to sneakout anyway, she unknowingly unleashes her own personal monster, discovers that she's a fifth generation monster hunter, and experiences fear for the first time.
This film provides examples of:
- I Know What You Fear: Each monster is the embodiment of somebody's worst fears and as such, knows all of them.
- I'm Not Afraid of You: Monsters can be defeated this way, if it's done by the person they're haunting.
- In the Blood: Monster hunting for Skylar.
- Literal Metaphor: At one point, Henry is literally paralyzed with fear.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: If Skylar hadn't cut the power in order to sneak out, she wouldn't have released Deimata.
- No Stunt Double: Olivia Holt has training in gymnastics, cheerleading, and martial arts, so she didn't need one.
- Oblivious to Love: At the beginning of the movie, Skylar is completely blind to the fact that Ryan is in love with her, as well as to the fact that he's scared to ask her out. The second one is at least justified, since she has no understanding of fear at all.
- Overprotective Parents: Skylar's parents don't allow her to go out on Halloween. Justified, as Skylar lacks their monster hunter training and would therefore be extremely vulnerable when the monsters come out.
- Sarcastic Clapping: Deimata does this while possessing Myra when Skylar suffers stage fright.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: Deimata. This is the reason Skylar was fearless for fifteen years, as Deimata was the physical embodiment of her fear.
- Sequel Hook: The end credits show Deimata cracking her containment unit just a little, hinting that she may escape.
- Shout Out: When Deimata meets up with her henchmen after being released, she asks whether Stephen King is still writing books. She then asks if kids still go to see horror movies only to be told that whilst vampires are popular right now, it is the romantic type of vampire.
- Steampunk: The monster hunting equipment has this look. It's lampshaded.
- The Unintelligible: Myra, while wearing her neck cast is unable to talk.
- "World of Cardboard" Speech: "Fearless" is a musical one to Deimata. Skylar was previously too afraid to sing so this act breaks both her fear and Deimata's power.