Dev Patel. © 2024 Universal Pictures, Monkeypaw Productions, Bron Studios, Thunder Road Films, Minor Realm, S'YA Concept, WME Independent, and Creative Wealth Media.
Directed by Dev Patel.
Press Screening
Watched it in ICON-X @ Showplace ICON One Small Ember Can Burn Down Everything This ain't your average John Wick esk film. Dev Patel's directorial debut in the action genre with his film Monkey Man is a heart-pounding bloody film with a deep cultural story that makes it stand out. I was expecting pure bloody action sequences but there is care to its narrative and protagonist that makes this film feel fresh and unique. Beyond the action sequences, there is something that connected with me that can be universal and with Patel's direction, writing, and acting, he brought something special to the action genre table. Let's visit India and follow the legend, Monkey Man in his revenge tale. Story: A young man ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he's beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash. After years of suppressed rage, he 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. Revenge stories are always intriguing but some of them don't hit the right marks with their emotional beats or brutal moments that keep up the suspense. However, with Monkey Man, Patel delivers those beats while adding the Indian culture to its environments and the protagonist's story arc. The way it is structured is simple but there is surprisingly more character and even backstory development that makes the final act impactful and his altercation with the main antagonist meaningful. Dev Patel's character Kid, faces many challenges like classism, love, and trauma. There is a lot of trauma and PTSD with his character and it is used effectively and luckily, not overdone which tends to be a bit of a problem when relying too much on flashbacks. One of the reasons I said that Kid faces classism is because the story's environment is focused on classism in India and the lives of the poor and the rich. In the film, Kid's younger life was bright and happy because of his mother and they were living in a well respectable community. However, everything falls when Rana (Sikandar Kher) kills his mother and destroys his home. These scenes' environments told a lot about his struggles and with Patel's visual direction, it carried the tone and visual landscape while adding depth to the protagonist's backstory. Overall, it was effective and it is an interesting aspect that Patel tackled. Adding onto that aspect, beyond the bloody revenge story, there is also some political commentary and representation on-screen. It felt natural within the story and it added a level of realism which enriches the themes and visual elements. As for the actual revenge story, it is deeply about trauma and love. Patel mixes flashbacks and present time effectively through editing which strengthens the emotional beats and Kid's PTSD. His relationship with his mother which became the key that made him become the hero was constructive and with Kid's enemies like Rana and Baba, it powers his rage which makes his character so compelling and fearless, and also makes the action feel more raw and powerful. His character arc went from climbing up to a better life, getting beaten down by his own trauma, re-facing and evaluating that trauma, and ultimately fighting and defeating that trauma. With Dev Patel's direction, that character arc was executed very well and I was so compelled by how he keeps facing his trauma but also learning his struggles and using those struggles as strengths to become the monkey man. Altogether, his character is compelling with depth and with the socio-political commentary tied into the environment of the story, it makes a sturdy and raw story that makes the total bloody action feel right in its own way. As for the other characters in the story, I thought they served a purpose in Kid's journey. Most of them had limited screen time but they brought out each important element that triggers Kid's feelings, or a subtle action. Rana and Sita (Sobhita Dhulipala) were the main triggers to Kid's trauma and their roles in the film were well-developed with limited dialogue between Kid. The visual direction that Petal executed in displaying Kid's trauma is very strong and it doesn't shy away it's realistic, meaningful, and sometimes uncomfortable scenes. He focused a lot on visuals and it worked right with these characters specifically. I also cannot deny that Alphonso (Pitobash) was a funny character and he brought the action charm to the film. As for Alpha (Vipin Sharma), Alpha became a cornerstone character for Kid's journey and Alpha's mentorship role strengthened the struggles of Kid's trauma as a way to overcome his own trauma. I would say this is the standout side character in the film and his role overall brought depth to the environment of the story and most importantly, the culture. Lastly, it is also nice seeing Sharlto Copley back on the silver screen. His role was energetic and added a level of craziness to the wild nights in India. These characters altogether had an impact on the protagonist's arc, trauma, or the environment of the story. As I mentioned before, the film's culture serves as an important background in the film and through its revenge story.
The culture in Monkey Man is diverse and rich in each setting in almost every scene. The environments play a key part in building the protagonist's backstory and current struggles. With the great and grounded production design, it makes each environment very distinct and unique. What also makes it unique is that some environments represent the protagonist's journey including his emotions. Especially inside the luxury hotel on each floor, the wide variety of neon colors support the cinematography and add a layer to the character's emotion through production design. Back to the overall culture presented in the film, there is authenticity and social commentary from Patel's direction. From the cultural myths and arts to the film's music, there is a rich variety of Indian culture and luckily in the film, we get to see a huge variety of locations that diversify the whole culture. I really enjoyed Patel's direction with his personal injection of the Indian culture. All of these elements lead to the biggest element that makes his film brutal and the story gritty and grounded.
Dev Patel's action direction is raw, brutal, bloody, heart-pounding, and fun! This is the real juice that keeps the momentum and suspense of the film, including its important character development scenes which lead to the bloody final act. Patel's action style is right in front of our noses when shit goes down. A lot of interesting Dutch angles, close-ups, and shaky camera movements that feel just so right for this film alone. It is total pack-a-punch in each action scene and there is some breather between the action. Yet, when the action is about to commence, the intensity already shines into the emotions of the characters and it explodes once the first punch hits. I knew that this film was going to be bloody but it was a blood-fest and there is more hand-to-hand combat rather than gunfight which is a nice change in this modern era of action films. Patel keeps telling in many interviews that he broke his arm, his fingers, and other bones. By that news, I am not that surprised and there is a lot of creativity within the sequences in terms of physicality. Patel kicked ass hard in these sequences and the action alone is worth the ticket to see all of the brutality on the big screen. As for the technical aspects, it is a well-produced film with a lot of creativity within its restrictions based on interviews from Patel. The technical production is excellent and while there were restrictions due to a limited budget, there is a lot of creativity that couldn't been possible without those restrictions. The cinematography is very slick with a lot of beautiful colors and smart lighting choices. The Dutch angles as I mentioned earlier were a key aspect to the cinematography and it worked well due to the visceral and raw nature of the violence present. Especially with the shaky cam technique, it worked in creating that grounded action. The editing is also well done and I cannot find a way to complain about the fast editing here because it was necessary to visualize some of the trauma of the protagonist and the flashbacks. As for the production design, as I explained earlier in the review, I thought it was very great due to the culture of the country and the emotional connection with the protagonist. It also supported well with the overall visuals which is also nice to see. The film's score is also good with a lot of recognizable songs which did not bother me for the most part. Based on the many interviews about the production itself made me appreciate the technical aspects and it is insane how they pulled it off. A fantastic round of applause to the production team. While I love the creativity of this film narratively and its technical elements, there are still some flaws that I ran into. One of those flaws is the supposed main villain Baba (Makarand Deshpande). His scenes were cool and served a purpose, but I found his character quite lacking until his last scene with the protagonist. Even though his presence felt strong, his character overall didn't seem interesting until his last scene. It felt like the main villain for half of the film is Rana and while that balance worked out, I was still itching for more of Baba's backstory. I was a bit underwhelmed with Sita on her relationship with the protagonist. Besides those flaws aside from minimal pacing issues, I was hooked with the film until the final frame. As for the ending, some will have mixed feelings on it but it worked for me. Ultimately, Monkey Man is another achievement in the action genre and a fantastic directorial debut from Dev Patel. It is bloody, raw, gut-punching, vivid, and brutal from start to finish. Lots of creativity within the cinematography, production design, and action sequences. More importantly, there is a lot of great depth in the protagonist's journey and the culture being represented. A ballpark of a film and I am happy that Universal picked it up for theatrical distribution because this is a must-see action-packed film. Let Patel cook more within directing.
Now Playing in Theaters, including in Dolby Cinema!
Vizeit Score: "A"
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Copyright © 2024 Vizeit Reviews / Vizeit Studios. All Rights Reserved. Review Written By: Everardo Garcia Jr. Editor In-Chief/Owner of Vizeit Reviews | (Chicago Indie Critics Member [CIC])
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