Director: Dev Patel
Writers: Paul Angunawela, John Collee, Dev Patel
Stars: Dev Patel, Sharlto Copley, Pitobash
Synopsis: In order to prevent a deadly explosion, an illicit crack team has 24 hours to drive two truckloads of nitroglycerine across a desert laden with danger.
Monkey Man, Dev Patel’s directorial debut, straight rips and f*cks, grabs you by the throat and simply won’t let go. It is a revenge-fueled, vengeful thriller through Mumbai’s gritty and sweaty streets and the unseemly acts of the rich and powerful that go on high up in towers and shadowy smoke-filled rooms.
However, a haunting element to Patel’s Monkey Man draws the audience in. This is not just an action film that should be labeled John Wick in Mumbai, but a thriller for the freaks, the downtrodden, Dalits, slumdogs, hustlers, prostitutes, and the religiously oppressed fighting against a system that is stacked against them.
The story follows “Kid” (Patel), a fighter who goes by the moniker “Monkey Man.” He is an underground fighter who throws fights for the club’s owner, Tiger (District 9’s Sharito Copley). Fight after fight. He lets a wide array of freaks and geeks beat him to a bloody pulp for little money and always about half of what he agreed upon.
Knowing he needs a steady and good-paying job, he sets up a con, stealing the purse of a wealthy hotel manager, Queenie (Ashwini Kalsekar). He arranges a return but refuses the few bills Queenie offers as a reward and makes his play. He asks for a job, proudly proclaiming his grunt-filled resume, doing any job that no one else wants. Or is there another plan? An eagle-eyed viewer will notice Patel’s ever-so-subtle use of the surroundings; blink, and you’ll miss it.
When Alphonso (Million Dollar Arm’s Pitobash), who is basically Queenie’s VIP hotel concierge, and whom she coldly refers to as “Inbred Goat Fucker” (now there’s a sequel spinoff I’d sign off for), asks his name, he tells Alphonso “Bobby,” which is written on the can of bleach in front of him. Bobby positions himself next to Alphonso, wanting a job serving VIPs. Of course, after the fighter buys a gun, we begin to wonder what his goals are and the endgame.
Monkey Man is Dev Patel’s first feature film behind the camera, and his directorial debut is a bloody, bone-crunching anarchy. The Slumdog Millionaire and Lion star also wrote the script. Patel is on record, wanting to create an action-filled narrative with more significant meaning. At the same time, many may view his Monkey Man as a typical revenge thriller. Frankly, you can’t argue that point since it’s a classic genre popular in film (Nobody) and television (Reacher) today.
Nevertheless, Patel has a real eye for stylized action, pace, and tone for a first-time filmmaker behind the camera that is jaw-dropping. (You’ll also notice a few nods to his previous movies in his filmography.) Monkey Man also shows the genre through the lens of fighting back against a caste system of oppression that supposedly has been eradicated, but the invisible lines of oppression remain.
This is where Patel and his film separates himself from your typical Hollywood thriller. Patel’s film explores subtle themes of nonconformity, resistance, community, and, ultimately, solidarity. The freshman filmmakers aren’t afraid to examine shadowy figures involved in murder, illicit drugs, sex trafficking, and the trauma of forced displacement with the backdrop of the Diwali festival, which celebrates the “victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.”
Yet, while the additional depth and subtext are appreciated, Patel’s Monkey Man, make no mistake, is a rip-roaring, hair-raising, and invigorating action film. The movie has three great action sequences that build throughout and reverberate throughout the picture. You can see some similarities and influences between Monkey Man and other revenge thrillers. I will call them an homage rather than downright stealing (John Wick franchise, Kill Bill), but the setting and perspective give the genre a fresh coat of paint that makes it new again.
Monkey Man is a triumph. Dev Patel announces himself as a new action star and a filmmaker to watch in the future. Breathless, bold, and blunt, his film doesn’t, well, monkey around. In a world where good versus evil usually means abuse of money and power, Monkey Man knows the only currency that matters is haunting memories.
And the Kid/Monkey Man/Bobby is carrying receipts that need to be cashed in.
