The road to Monkey Man has been a long one. A passion project from British-Indian actor Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire, The Green Knight), making his feature directorial debut, Monkey Man was first announced back in 2018. Several broken bones for Patel later, filming ended in March 2021. Netflix initially acquired worldwide distribution rights before producer Jordan Peele and his Monkeypaw Productions stepped in, securing a theatrical release for the film. What a blessing that is, because this deserves to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Monkey Man is epic in every sense, complete with a multi-layered storyline, an identity rich with culture, and high-octane fight sequences that firmly announce Dev Patel as the next big voice in action cinema.
Dev Patel stars as Kid, an anonymous young man who spends his time doing odd jobs. He partakes in an underground fight club by night run by a shady promoter (Sharlto Copley) — wherein he chooses to hide his identity with a gorilla mask during his matches against popular fighters — while working as a server by day in a lounge for the elite spearheaded by the well-connected Queenie Kapoor (Ashwini Kalsekar). The latter is merely a smokescreen for Kid to enact his plan for vengeance against corrupt spiritual leader Baba Shakti (Makarand Deshpande) and police officer Rana (Sikanda Kher). Baba Shakti hides his oppression of the poor in the fictional city of Yatana behind a put-on benevolence. Meanwhile, Rana is responsible for the death of Kid’s mother Neela (Adithi Kalkunte). On the warpath, Kid’s story begins to take the shape of the Hindu myth of monkey commander Hanuman.
Dev Patel anchors Monkey Man with a striking leading performance. Kid instantly joins the pantheon of ultracool action heroes before him. His quiet resolve, only to explode into bursts of violence, recalls the likes of reserved badasses like Ryan Gosling’s protagonist in Drive. What makes Kid interesting, though, is his ability to navigate the criminal underworld of Yatana. Wherever Kid goes he blends in, but Patel communicates purely through his eyes, constantly scanning his surroundings and assessing the situation. You can practically see the gears turn in Kid’s head without the need for dialogue, his grand schemes for revenge always keeping you guessing at the edge of your seat.
One of Dev Patel’s biggest aims here was to make an action thriller with deep meaning, infused with his South Asian heritage. In this regard, Monkey Man feels deeply reverent, drawing inspiration from the Hindu legend of Hanuman, whose story involves being cursed to forget his powers only to use his resolve to help a deity rescue their wife. It must also be mentioned that Patel shines a spotlight on the Indian Hijra community through the character of Alpha (Vipin Sharma), the leader of a tribe of “third gender” warriors who exist outside the binary of the American notions of gender. Others ostracize these intersex, gender non-conforming, and trans women. But for Kid, they give him a second chance at fulfilling his mission by taking him in and disciplining him into a mature vigilante.
Written by Patel himself alongside writers Paul Angunawela and John Collee, it appears like this story has existed in its main star’s head for a long time. Now that he’s gotten the chance to make it, Patel leaves nothing off the table. Monkey Man builds a vast mythology for the fictional grimy yet lively city of Yatana, occupied by a series of memorable supporting characters. Two who have not been mentioned yet are the observant escort (Sobhita Dhulipala) and Kid’s well-connected eventual sidekick Alphonso (Pitobash). Like the rest of the cast, these two leave a strong impression, and in any other film, they would steal the whole show based on the strength of their screen presence alone. But here, they are each part of a larger mosaic of equally impressive characters who all get some deserved time to shine.
A strong socially conscious undercurrent runs underneath Monkey Man. Even when the action takes center stage, there’s always at least some focus on its many socio-political themes. However, Monkey Man threatens to get confusing as it aims to focus on several things at once, not helped by the slow unspooling of the narrative. That isn’t a mark against the film as much as it’s part of its ambitious design. Some will see it as too ambitious for Patel’s direction can also be visually overwhelming. He’s often doing so much at once that it can feel like sensory overload — whether how positive or negative this is will depend on the viewer’s patience for such chaos. The direction often comes close to a critical mass where there’s so much stimulation all you can do is stare with your mouth agape as you try to grasp what’s unraveling on screen.
Ultimately, though, this go-for-broke attitude is what makes Dev Patel’s direction so admirable. There’s an infectious, propulsive energy to Monkey Man, where it feels like a director who’s been at this for over a decade is finally making his masterpiece. It’s intimidating to be in the presence of such great filmmaking on a feature debut. There’s really no choice but to surrender to it early on. The images, shot by Whiplash and Silent Night cinematographer Sharone Meir, are purely decadent. Every frame has the potential to stick around in the viewer’s memory for years to come. The deep red of Kid riding in an elevator to confront his enemies. The swooping movements that frame Baba Shakti as the gaudy false prophet he is. And, finally, the bombast and rage of Kid beating his chest in a gorilla mask.
The piece de resistance is, of course, the action. Monkey Man is revolutionary in how it handles its action sequences. Comparisons to John Wick, the great Bruce Lee, and Korean action cinema will certainly be made by fans, and for good reason. That’s not bad company to be in at all! What sets Monkey Man apart, however, is that it boasts an inherent sweatiness, a desperation for combat where each fight becomes a primal struggle. A first-act melee set to Jefferson Airplane’s “Somebody to Love” would be the peak of any other action movie. But Monkey Man gives us several all-timers — a kitchen brawl, a climactic duel where Kid matches his opponent’s punches with his own, and the fights in the underground ring just to name a few. The only missed opportunity? Not having Patel wear the monkey mask more.
Monkey Man is the kind of movie every aspiring action filmmaker has in their head, meant to be rewatched endlessly with new intricate details revealing themselves upon each screening. It’s a near-perfect piece of work that announces writer-director Dev Patel as an incredible force to be reckoned with behind the camera. Given the path trendsetters like John Wick, and the many action flicks it has solely inspired, have paved at the box office, it’ll be shocking if Monkey Man isn’t a massive hit leading to the demand for Dev Patel’s next picture. But unlike some of those other “John Wick knockoffs,” Monkey Man boasts a unique identity and bold originality to its epicness that cannot be compared to any other revenge thriller. We can only hope that whatever Patel decides to pursue next comes sooner rather than later.
Monkey Man premiered at the 2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival. The film releases in theaters on April 5!
Release Date: April 5, 2024.
Directed by Dev Patel.
Screenplay by Dev Patel, Paul Angunawela, & John Collee.
Story by Dev Patel.
Produced by Dev Patel, Jomon Thomas, Jordan Peele, Win Rosenfeld, Ian Cooper, Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee, Christine Haebler, Sam Sahni, & Anjay Nagpal.
Executive Produced by Jonathan Fuhrman, Natalya Pavchinskya, Aaron L. Gilbert, Andria Spring, Alison-Jane Roney, & Steven Thibault.
Main Cast: Dev Patel, Sharlto Copley, Pitobash, Sobhita Dhulipala, Sikandar Kher, Vipin Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar, Adithi Kalkunte, & Makarand Deshpande.
Cinematographer: Sharone Meir.
Composer: Jed Kurzel.
Production Companies: BRON Studios, Thunder Road Films, Monkeypaw Productions, Lost Winds Entertainment, S’Ya Concept, Lucky Elephant Media, Minor Realm, WME Independent, & Creative Wealth Media Finance.
Distributor: Universal Pictures.
Runtime: 120 minutes.
Rated R.
