Monkey Man does not feel like a film that can be explained with words alone, so it feels a bit contradictory that this recommendation exists at all. However, there is simply a point that needs to be made. You NEED to watch Monkey Man.
Directed by and starring Dev Patel, and produced with the help of NOPE director Jordan Peele, Monkey Man is an absolute experience of a film. Fast, colorful, beautiful, and violent. Very, very violent. Don’t let those descriptors sway you, however, because this is FAR more than just your average action thriller.
In an interview, Dev Patel states that he spent 10 years creating the story for Monkey Man, and those 10 years of work can be felt in every single corner of this film. Positively drenched in the color, culture, history, art, and politics of India, Monkey Man is a visual experience like no other. Costumes, shot composition, colors, and lighting all work together to create messy, bloody violence juxtaposed with scenes of quiet, otherworldly beauty. The fight choreography is varied and unique, reminiscent of films like John Wick, with creative use of setting, props, and costumes. Monkey Man’s action moves at a breakneck speed but never breaks the movement of your eye or the continuity of scenes.
Dev Patel’s visual strength and colorful direction serve for a very vibrant and colorful film, full of beautiful compositions and mind-bending shots, mixed with the simple beauty of India’s forests and nature. Despite there not being a lot of prominent dialogue, the lack of spoken words never hinders the progression of the story. When there is dialogue, the lines that are spoken stick in your brain for hours after the film is finished.
The first half of the film travels a mile a minute, following our mostly unnamed main character ‘kid’ through the grungy streets of India’s underbelly. This is followed by the much slower and quieter middle section of the film, which brings the pace down, taking a moment to breathe and take in the calm before the storm, which is the film’s final portion. This section is noticeably different from the first, though still fast, bloody, and loud, this finale is much more focused and measured, zoning in on kid’s motivations and goals, and his development as a character.
Monkey Man encompasses a LOT in its tight two-hour run time. It’s a story that can be peeled away layer by layer, each piece revealing something new. Historical and cultural context informs a lot of its story and morals. Although it’s not a difficult movie to understand, there are many, MANY nuances that require some prior knowledge and context that isn’t directly given. That being said, I think taking the time to search for yourself and dig through those layers of context will only make you appreciate this film more for what it is.
I have not seen many movies this year, and I don’t go to theaters very often if I can help it. I went into this cinema completely blind, expectations already high, and it STILL blew those expectations out of the water. Monkey Man is an experience in every sense of the word. As someone who saw it in a nearly empty theater with just a handful of friends, feet away from the screen, I could barely contain myself. And as we left the theater, there was a change in the air around us. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the look on my friend’s faces when the credits started to roll. With that, I implore you to go see Monkey Man today.
