After a horrible accident turns him into a quadriplegic, a man receives a helper monkey named Ella to assist him around the house. At first, things are going splendidly, and Ella starts to even show signs of attachment. Over time though, the monkey also begins to show signs of anger towards those who would do its master wrong.
If I don't make this pun, I'm doing a disservice to myself.
Monkey See, Monkey Kill.
Whew. Now that I've gotten that horrendous bit out of the way, Monkey Shines was one of George Romero's few attempts to break into the mainstream. Critics were split over their opinions of the flick, and it didn't exactly do gangbusters at the box office. Its poor performance and the studio's tampering forced Romero to essentially go back "underground" and stay away from those who meddle with his works. Kind of a shame though, as I found this to be very fun.
The film feels a bit similar to the 1971 gem Willard, but outside of the whole "my unusual pet is my only friend" angle, they don't have a great deal in common. The cast is relatively strong here, and their characters equally so. The real star is obviously the monkey Ella herself, and you gain a great deal of respect for those that trained her to be so expressive and in all of her various tasks she performs. Yes, we're all aware that they're remarkably intelligent creatures, but this is a shining example of such. The film's also a lot funnier than initially advertised, and the interactions (grim and non-grim alike) between Ella and her co-stars could bring a smile to your face even when you're in the foulest of moods.
Monkey Shines definitely isn't shy about it's feelings on animal testing either, judging by the numerous times it tries to get you to sympathize with the villain, even after we've clearly come to realize that it is most certainly NOT a sympathetic creature. The body count is also remarkably light, as is the use of blood, which might disappoint Romero fans who want gratuitous bloodshed, but I think that actually worked to its advantage. We can save the "Monkey with a Chainsaw" story for another day.
While there are some pretty strange plot twists and character changes that receive no explanation, and the film itself might be scientifically impossible, on the whole I really enjoyed this one. Delightfully entertaining, and a real nice change of pace from the Godfather of zombie flicks. Did I also mention that it has Stephen Root (Office Space) and Stanley Tucci in it? Because it totally does.
Tomorrow, we're back to current times with THE WOMAN and THE INNKEEPERS.
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