The Monkey follows twin boys, Hal and Bill, who discover a clockwork monkey toy that, when wound up, causes a random person’s death by divine intervention. After witnessing several deaths due to the powers of the monkey, the boys throw it down a well, hoping never to see it again. However, 25 years later, it returns to wreak havoc upon their hometown…
As you may have predicted, this is a gory film. The film follows in the footsteps of comically violent slashers like Final Destination and X, with absurdly brutal deaths staged in creative ways. The deaths are, for the most part, too absurd to be legitimately troubling and are more exhilarating to behold. If you’re particularly squeamish, however, I would discourage viewership.
Theo James gives good dual performances as Hal and Bill, displaying opposing personifications of how grief can manifest detrimentally in one’s adult life. Whilst James’s handsomeness makes his performance as a reserved, unassuming man slightly incredulous, the dissonance between his looks and his character works appropriately within the film’s camp 80s aesthetic. It is worth noting that Christian Convery’s performance as young Hal and Bill is particularly impressive for a child actor.
Overall, whilst the film displays all kinds of brutality in death, the sentiment expressed is positive and productive. The tagline on the film’s poster says it all: “Everybody dies. And that’s fucked up.” This line bluntly expresses the film’s central concern, conveying how one grapples with grief and fear of death after losing those close to them. The film endorses relinquishing one’s fear, accepting the inevitability and indeterminacy of death, and trying to have fun while you can. The titular monkey is shown to be a surprisingly layered and apt metaphor for such concepts by the film’s close, elevating the material considerably.
“Evil monkey from the movie about the evil monkey that smiles awkwardly” by scragz is licensed under CC BY 2.0.