Death, in The Monkey (2025), Is No Laughing Matter
Title: The Monkey
First Non-Festival Release: February 12, 2025 (Premiere)
Director: Osgood Perkins
Writer: Osgood Perkins, Stephen King
Runtime: 98 Minutes
Starring: Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Christian Convery
Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here
Everybody dies. A startling mantra to say the least, but at the same time it evokes a sense of comfort. We may not know the when, how, and why but we can all sleep easier knowing there is one certainty in life.
This is the refrain that Lois (Tatiana Maslany) shares with her sons Bill (Christian Convery/Theo James) and Hal (Christian Convery/Theo James) after their babysitter Annie (Danica Dreyer) accidentally gets her throat sliced by a hibachi chef. The freak accident would be enough to stomach if it didn’t happen so often throughout their lives. After two more deaths, the boys suspect their absent father’s (Adam Scott) antique monkey might be behind the shocking accidents. Its ancient power refuses to be mocked, downplayed, or used without its explicit intent, and it intends to show the twins just how much power it holds over them and those around them.
A wicked sense of humor and excellent performances make Osgood Perkins swing with The Monkey worth it.
Adapting the short story to screen, The Monkey revels in its unserious approach to dark slapstick humor. There is something comic about death that Perkins captures excellently in The Monkey. No matter how many times the humans in The Monkey try, there is no escaping the inevitability of death. The central monkey becomes more than a cursed object, but a personification of this fate. Despite this being a rather dark topic, The Monkey wrings out every ounce of comedy to highlight how vicious, unpredictable, and hilarious death can be. While a few changes are noticeable in the execution, The Monkey takes its fun premise into an absurd direction that is sure to tickle those who have a morbid sense of humor.
It’s less about the story and more about the messaging making it somewhat a movie for the moment, The Monkey hopes to deliver a message of comfort in the chaos. Whenever Bill or Hal turn the key on the Monkey with the expressed hope of eliminating someone, it doesn’t listen. This desire for control over something as untamable as death is natural, especially given their proximity to death their entire life. In a way, throughout the film, the Monkey is reminding them that they have no control over this facet of life.
Father-Son and Brother-Brother relationships are tested and strained, bringing out the best and worst of each other. Hal’s learned cautiousness has led to him distancing himself from his son, Petey (Colin O’Brien), which has led to Petey’s quiet resentment of Hal, even as he desperately tries to form a lasting connection. This desperation for a father figure mirrors both Hal and Bill’s own feelings for their father’s absence. Of course, each developed their own angst driven towards the mystery that is their father. Hal retreated inward while Bill lashed out, which leads to their own conflict with each other, the beating heart of The Monkey.
Both Theo James and Christian Convery deliver exceptional performances while playing at odds siblings. James’s approach to Hal and Bill could easily get lost in the cheesiness many twin subplots have. Fortunately, both Hal and Bill are given enough depth to not be simple ‘good’ and ‘evil’ twin foils to another. Hal is the more thoughtful, level-headed of the two while Bill is selfish and crasser. James plays both with a monotone affect but their personalities come out more through his body language and presence. Convery takes a more liberal approach with the twins’s childhood, still making an impressive mark all the same. Younger Bill and Hal have the same qualities, but Convery makes the differences starker until they lose their mother. The convergence sets the stage for James’s take on the duo but also aligns with the film’s dry messaging on death.
Delightfully unhinged and surprisingly touching, The Monkey is a love letter to both the aggrieved and grieving. Its sharp script and fun approach to its subject matter sneaks the heavier elements in for genre lovers and cinephiles alike to feast. Rube-Goldberg style death sequences and a keen sense of pacing ensures that the power of The Monkey is undeniable. Its humor will be hit or miss and the gore might be too over-the-top for some, but for those seeking some divine intervention The Monkey will make its verdict on you well before you make one of it. If you’re lucky, you’ll survive to see it through.
Overall Score? 8/10
