A Disturbed Man Sees Monsters After Taking Non-Regulated Depression Pills in ‘Corporate Monster’

In “Corporate Monster”, a really timely short film by Ruairi Robinson, which appears to be inspired by the 1988 John Carpenter film They Live, a disturbed man named Rob (Kett Turton) visits his doctor after losing his job. With a wink and a nod, the doctor gives him pills to take to help with his depression. Although the pills are not FDA approved, the doctor promises that they are the most effective. Rob takes the pills and begins feeling better. After a few days, he starts seeing certain people as Cthulhu-like monsters who apparently enjoy their immense power as much as the like the taste of human flesh.

Rob’s girlfriend Ellen (Jenna Coleman) does her best to understand what he’s going through, but refuses to take one of his pills. The next day, desperate to see Ellen, Rob shows up at Ellen’s work with a gun, determined to rid the world of these people-eating monsters. The first monster he sees, he shoots and keeps going. Ellen finally stops him by taking a pill.

After losing his jobs, an unstable man goes into a spiral of depression. His doctor gives him some pills to treat his condition, though they’re “not quite FDA approved yet.” But after taking the pills, he begins seeing things: he sees people as horrendous monsters, creatures that control the world from the shadows and stay hidden by people’s own blindness and apathy.