Film Review: ‘Monkey Man’ is Full of Action and Big Ideas from Dev Patel

As one of the few people not completely under the spell of the John Wick franchise, I don’t immediately get hopped up for the next action epic. So, the allure of Monkey Man, for me at least, was always more about the actor turned filmmaker at the center of it, as opposed to the fighting. I’m happy to report that the action itself will please those going in looking for all the punching, but it also has plenty of ideas and style that it’s grappling with. As a calling card film, it’s a really interesting start for an already talented actor.

Monkey Man is clearly a passion project for Dev Patel, making his filmmaking debut. The movie is rough around the edges, but there’s no way to watch this and not be excited to see what he does next behind the camera. As a bonus, Patel also casts himself as an action lead, which we’d never otherwise see, with the results suggesting that we’ve been missing out on it for years, too.

Taking some inspiration from the legend of Hanuman, who embodied courage and strength, we’re introduced to Kid (Patel), who spends his nights in the fictional Indian city of Yatana being beaten to a pulp for cash. Each night, he tapes up his deeply scarred hands, dons a gorilla mask, and gets absolutely annihilated, all for the few dollars that Tiger (Sharlto Copley) throws his way. After “work” he pursues vengeance for a childhood trauma, which kicks into high gear once he finds a way to infiltrate an elite club.

The club is run by Queenie (Ashwini Kalsekar) and after tricking her into hiring him, he befriends Alphonso (Pitobash) in order to gain a promotion. There, he sets his sights on Rana (Sikandar Kher), the corrupt police chief. However, that’s only the start of his plan, which thrown for a loop midway through. It all builds to an action-packed climax, one where he has a chance to finally settle a longtime score against the men who took everything that he holds dear from him.

Dev Patel kicks some major ass here. Not only does he showcase action hero chops, he gets to be more intense than we’ve ever seen him be before. He’s perfectly cast, which is just a little added bonus. Sharlto Copley has very little to do, while the likes of Ashwini Kalsekar, Sikandar Kher, and Pitobash serve their purposes well enough. There isn’t much depth to the lot, but they do their jobs, without question. Supporting players include Makrand Deshpande, Adithi Kalkunte, Vipin Sharma, and more, though Patel is clearly the star.

Also serving as co-writer and director, Patel stuff a lot into just under two hours. Co-writing with Paul Angunawela and John Collee, there’s ideas, philosophy, and even theology at play. The script can feel surface level at times in some regards, but it can never be accused of not giving you a lot to chew on. As a director, Patel has a knack for visceral action, even if the editing is a bit choppy. As a debut, this is quite accomplished, even with the minor flaws, as well as a middle section that sagged a bit for me.

Monkey Man is going to be a hit, I can feel it. It deserves to be, too, not just because it was rescued from streaming by Jordan Peele, but because it’s quality cinema. An accomplished filmmaking debut from Dev Patel, we should be very excited to see his sophomore feature. He’s not just a strong actor, but a storyteller with something to say, as well as an ability to entertain while doing so!

SCORE: ★★★