Monkey Man
From Skins to British-Indian films that please the 65+ cohort to exciting opportunities from Armando Iannucci and David Lowery and Wes Anderson, the evolution of Dev Patel has been a joy to behold. But unbeknownst to us, something had been bubbling away in the background for over a decade that would change our image of the kid from Slumdog Millionaire and ring in a new era of possibilities. Something that would see Patel step behind the curtain for the first time to write, direct, and produce before hopping back in front of it to absolutely wreck every motherfucker that gets between him and his target. That something is the stylistic action revenge film Monkey Man, a bombastic first entry in Patel’s filmography that, while far from perfect, represents an incredible achievement in filmmaking against insurmountable odds.
Monkey Man begins with a folktale told by a mother to her young son. It’s about Hanuman the monkey god, an Icarus-like figure (or perhaps Prometheus is closer) in Hinduism who spots what looks like a juicy mango high in the canopy of the forest. But the mango isn’t a mango at all – it's the sun. And when Hanuman eats it, he is punished by the gods for having the audacity to seek something outside of his lane. Then, we see flashes of some tragedy that befell the boy and his mother involving corrupt forces and the burning of their forest village. We’ll find out more later.
Shortly after, we meet Dev Patel in a monkey mask fighting in a fixed underground boxing match. It’s hosted by the perfectly cast Sharlto Copley, who doesn’t pay him what he’s owed because he didn’t bleed while taking the L. No blood = no blood bonus, you see. It’s tough titties for this character only referred to as Kid (and sometimes Bobby, after his favourite brand of bleach) but no matter — he has other plots for a more convenient way of making money that will put him in proximity to those who caused him the deepest hurt. His surest way to them is to steal the wallet of one Queenie Kapoor - the verbally colourful owner and proprietor of a luxury brothel servicing the fictional Indian city’s dodgiest characters - and return it to her in exchange for a job that no one else wants to do. There, he will work his way up until he gets close enough to plunge a knife into the necks of those who wronged him, and of those who are running the country into the ground. As it turns out, they are one and the same.
The story of how Monkey Man made it into cinemas is as wholesome as Patel’s trajectory. Over a decade from concept to completion, the film was initially picked up by Netflix for distribution before they got cold feet and backed out. Jordan Peele saw it and thought it deserved a cinema release, so he acquired it and convinced Universal Pictures to distribute it jointly with his company Monkeypaw Productions. And he was right for doing so, because Monkey Man is a film that really benefits from a big screen and a proper sound system. It’s also a genre piece that attempts to deliver deeper messaging about false gods, the caste system in India, corruption at the highest level and the joint faith of outcasts overcoming oppression, all while taking inspiration from the likes of John Wick, The Raid, Oldboy and even, at times, The Lion King. I use ‘attempts’ because Monkey Man's greatest strength - its ambition - is also its greatest weakness. It doesn’t reach the heights of its influences, but its efforts in trying are worthy of a special kind of reverence.
Among the film’s high points are first and foremost its star. This is Dev Patel as we’ve never seen him — lean, mean and fueled by bloody vengeance. While he doesn’t have the kinetic gait of the Nanu (and fair enough, Keanu has years of experience and training) his shortcomings are cleverly hidden by behind-the-lens Dev, who uses smart camerawork to mask any physical awkwardness. Speaking to the UK’s most affable interviewer Ali Plumb, he recounts the immense setbacks he faced during production, which included broken toes, eye infections, torn shoulders, a smashed hand and the screw that held it together, bankruptcies in the finance department that heavily impacted production design, and the loss of the John Wick stunt team after the pandemic forced shooting to relocate from India to Indonesia. Taking the effects of Murphy’s Law into account, the final result is undeniably impressive and frankly, charmingly in line with its subject matter.
The film uses music brilliantly; Jed Kurzel’s score helps to build the worlds within and the track selection is sublime. There are moments of well-handled comedy - a glass window that won’t smash, an unexpected roundhouse knockout - and the casting of the villains is excellent, particularly the Steven Bauer-coded Rana Singh, the reprehensible Baba Shakti and the underutilised but darkly hilarious Queenie Kapoor, whose eyeliner is as sharp as her insults. The neon-tinged scenes are beautifully constructed and shot, emulating the grimy but gorgeous world created by Nicolas Winding Refn in Only God Forgives. And while the limited budget could have stifled much of the cinematography, it forced Patel and co to get creative with shooting in staircases that weren’t wide enough and tight spaces that required single takes. This mandated resourcefulness is thematically appropriate in that Kid’s plight reflects Patel’s; he’s a guy who has never done this before, but he’s doing the absolute best he can with what he’s got. Just imagine what he could do with a proper budget and some studio confidence backing his vision.
That this film exists in the state that it does is testament to Patel’s resilience. In his pre-recorded message prior to our screening he said that he “put everything he has into this film”. Having mulled it over and done my required reading, it’s very evident that this is the truth. It also makes criticism feel a bit unnecessary but there are things about Monkey Man - narrative based things - that I feel could’ve done with some ironing out.
In its attempt to traverse so many issues the film gets a little lost in a forest of its own making. There are too many flashbacks scattered throughout and I’d argue that the audience would be able to piece together the character’s ‘why’ without them. Several subplots seem to get set up only to be abandoned. There is an overreliance on homage (the similarities to John Wick are even blatantly voiced by one character) that I wish the film had the confidence to veer away from. The tropes (the training montage, the Rafiki-like guide who helps unlock Kid’s inner purpose, the makeshift Q character selling guns in a secret armoury) can be ticked off one by one along the hero’s journey and while the pacing generally works for me, the ending does feel a bit rushed. Then there are little annoyances, like unconvincing background dancers who would be thrown from such an establishment for their inability to look sexy while moving, and the comic relief character doing little to provide comic relief. Still, these are the grievances of a first film and I must remind myself: this is a first film.
In the previously mentioned interview Plumb tells Patel what I think we’d all like to:
“I don’t want to come across as patronising or ‘too much’…but I’m super proud of you.”
Cue quivering bottom lip, because me too. Monkey Man is an exciting first step from someone with enormous potential. Few modern directors have the nads to attempt a fighty revenge flick as their first film and Dev Patel deserves all the enthusiastic praise he’s getting. The film’s flaws do not outweigh the blood, sweat and tears that went into it and I can only encourage people to head to the cinemas and show Monkey Man the support it needs.
Verdict:
☆☆☆½
(but ☆☆☆☆☆ for effort)
Monkey Man is in cinemas now. Onya, Dev.
