In many respects, Osgood Perkins’ new film THE MONKEY is the most moralizing horror movie in some time. The genre has always had its bold way of underlining good v. bad, but the smarter frighteners indict not only the bogeyman but those who willingly invite its treachery. (For example, a vampire cannot wreak havoc in a household unless invited in by a human host.) Thus, THE MONKEY is a very affecting morality tale since the carnage that comes with the toy isn’t always the kind that its enabler was hoping for.
That’s what happens when the twins Hal and Bill Shelburn (Christan Convery) stumble across the vintage toy monkey in the attic of their father. He has abandoned his family and they’re curious about who he was and what belonging he had that may clue them into his departure. The teen boys are intrigued by the demonic-looking ape who plays a drum with varying velocity when you give it a crank. Soon enough, they discover that the cranked up toy seemingly causes death to someone nearby. (We learn that ourselves in an outrageous, pre-credit sequence involving Adam Scott as the absentee father.) Because the boys are smart cookies, they soon realize the power of fate they appear to have in their hands.
Bill, the older twin who uses the fact that he was born first to his advantage, wants nothing to do with what he perceives as a demonic instrument. Th meeker Hal sees the toy as a way to even the playing field. Even though their blunt mother Lois (Tatiana Maslany) explains that death in the world is random and both good and bad people can die indiscriminately, the bullied Hal wants to coax the death of his enemies along via the drumming ape. He cranks up the toy, hoping it will do in his prick of a brother. But fate, as mom explained, isn’t always predictable.
At this moment, Perkins, in his adaptation of Stephen King’s 1980 sly short story, makes it clear that whenever death occurs, there are many circumstances involved that may or may not be laid at the toy’s feet, er paws. THE MONKEY is a cautionary tale as well as a morality one. Perkins clearly is cautioning against anyone thinking they can “play God” with other people’s lives. The toy may be evil, but so are the motives of those who knowingly give it a crank.
There is plenty of grotesque bloodletting in the film, reminiscent of the imaginative deaths dotting the FINAL DESTINATION franchise. Still, Perkins plays most of the deaths for laughs in their (ahem) execution. He has a flair for comedy, as his early acting gigs often indicated, and as the film’s director, he uses camera angles, editing, and sound effects to underline each exit for maximum mirth.
Matters become more serious when the story picks up the twins as adults. Now played by Theo James, they’re tragic adults, each a stunted man-child in their own way. They’re estranged from each other too, having been tweaked by the toy for years. The brothers are both self-absorbed, anti-social, and unsuccessful in most every part of their lives. Hal is especially encumbered and is not only divorced, but estranged from his teen son Petey (Colin O’Brien). Petey, in turn, is openly contemptuous of his absentee father, a parallel to Hal’s father that Perkins makes sure we see. Hal is so ready to shirk all responsibility to his child, he even agrees to one last weekend with Petey before handing custody over to his mom (Laura Mennell) and stepfather (Elijah Wood, in an all too brief cameo).
Of course, the toy still manages to pop up in the twin’s lives. The monkey cannot be destroyed despite their best efforts to unload it over the years. Hmm…do you think it will come into play during the final weekend between father and son? Heh heh heh…
There is a lot of craziness throughout the film, but the well-chosen cast plays it quite straight. Without trying to be comedic, James is very funny, playing against his handsome looks to create a shrinking violet of an adult male. Maslany is droll and delightful in her brief time in the film. In fact, all the supporting players make strong impressions no matter how much screen time they’re given, including Perkins himself in the role of a strange uncle. The best performance comes from child actor Convery who is outstanding playing both twins. He makes them each so unique in body language, gait, and vocal delivery that at first, I thought it might be actual twins playing the parts of Hal and Bill. Kudos to him and to Perkins for giving us one of cinema’s truly most accomplished child performances.
The film is accomplished too – smart, economical, and focused – even if it’s not nearly as scary as it should be. The toy is terrifying, but the deaths associated with it never quite feel tragic, despite the innocence of some of the victims. Perkins nails the morality messaging in his terrific, darkly comic frightener, but while his film consistently tickles our funny bones, it doesn’t quite send chills up the spine.
