Review: Monkey Man
Review: Monkey Man
One Small Ember Can Burn Down Everything
INTRODUCTION
This is a quick review of the newly released film Monkey Man. Keep in mind this is but one of the many movies I watch every year, and that whatever initial grade I come up for this film could change for better or worse with time. To better keep up to date with both my thoughts on other movies and if my feelings on this film changed, follow me on Letterboxd.
I’d also appreciate it greatly if you spread the word about the newsletter to any family or friends who would love to have film reviews, classic movie lists, and Oscars projections delivered straight to their inbox.
THE PLOT
Via Letterboxd: Kid, an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash. After years of suppressed rage, Kid discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
QUICK REVIEW
Leading men (or women) on-screen deciding to try their hand at being behind the camera and directing their own project can always be a gamble. You have your Clint Eastwoods or Bradley Coopers who go on to direct Best Picture competitive films. Then you have your George Clooneys or Jessie Eisenbergs who end up having much more mixed results. So as someone who has enjoyed watching Dev Patel in front of the camera, I was hoping the best for him when word got out he was trying his hand at directing. And when I figured out that it would be an action flick which got buzz out of the South By Southwest Festival as being the next John Wick, I became increasingly curious and excited to see the final product.
Patel has made it no secret that filming Monkey Man was a trial by fire. From scheduled shoots going wrong, to camera equipment going missing, to behind the scenes politics leading to Jordan Peele (Another actor who himself ended up a very successful director) having to step in and help finance and distribute the film. Such chaotic production hell stories can lead to disasters like The Bonfire Of The Vanities or it can prove to be a detour to greatness such as with Apocalypse Now. But there’s also the issue that Patel decided to direct himself which is no crime as Bradley Cooper did just that last year with Maestro, a film that ended up in my personal top five of 2023. But that too could always be a gamble on to itself.
So taking all these things into consideration, how I did come away from my press screening of Monkey Man feeling about Patel’s potential future prospects at becoming the next Cooper or Peele? Well, I’d say he has a chance to become the first Dev Patel.
Patel’s eye for direction and where to guide the camera shows incredible promise for what will hopefully be future directorial projects from him. Not only does he prove to know how to shoot an action scene, he made me feel every inch of every punch in this. And the crowd I watched this with seemed to as well, as they vocally reacted to every hit, stabbing, gun shot, and gnarly violent moment. The cinematography is beautiful and the editing is superb, but some frantic camera moments are going to divide some on camera work.
The film features some incredibly witty and crisp dialogue writing that leads to moments of levity that my crowd reacted very well to. The character writing is incredibly well done in the way it builds off the lore its following, though some side characters could’ve been a little more fleshed out then they were. Patel also showed a side I never saw of him in front of the camera, proving he can lead an action film every bit as much as a Daniel Craig or Keanu Reeves could. I found myself incredibly invested in his journey and at the end the crowd I was with applauded for him coming to the end of that road.
The movie does lean into some themes on faith, looking at how it can be corrupted and yet also looking at the positive aspect it can bring to some people which is sorely more needed in modern cinema if you ask me. There’s also some stuff here on the politics of attacking minority groups, but I do wish it had been touched on more heavily than it was. One final con I’ll point out is that there is this lull in the middle, but not enough for me to ignore how great the pacing is in the first and third act.
Overall, I came away from Monkey Man incredibly entertained, feeling as if I had a good time at the movies, and hoping to see what Patel’s future directorial work could look like as he grew and learned from this first experience. Its not a perfect movie. I expect many will like it, but I’m not sure they’ll LOVE it. Regardless its easily one of the best films I’ve seen this early into 2024 and only the fourth in the four months in that I’d give an A-tier grade to. I give Patel’s directorial debut an initial grade of A-. Go see this at your local theatre, and watch it with an enthusiastic audience while you’re at it!
INTIAL GRADING
