Monkey Man

This weekend, Monkey Man, a new action thriller released in theaters. Monkey Man follows a young man as he sets on a path of vengeance against the corrupt officials who murdered his mother. This film has been described as John Wick in Mumbai. As I am a fan of the John Wick films, I was interested to see this film.

Overall, this was a solid action thriller. While the most accurate way to describe it is John Wick in Mumbai, in a lot of ways it is really nothing like John Wick at all and that is ok. While John Wick is very stylized with its action sequences, Monkey Man has a very real and gritty feel to it. The main character does not look or feel invincible which I think adds a much more relatable aspect to him. The director's goal was to make a more realistic revenge film and I think he succeeded. In many other films, the main character walks away unharmed while in this film, our main character gets beat up and bruised as one would in real life. This movie also delivers quite a bit of emotion and pain through its main character. The movie is not just nonstop action. It stops and breathes to give us time to learn more about the main character. You can feel the pain he is going through and understand what is driving him to continue in his mission. I also thought this movie did a decent job of incorporating its political commentary. It has an opinion about certain political issues in India but I don't think it was super in your face about it which is always the best way to include something like that. I also thought a lot of the action shots were uniquely shot which really shows Dev Patel's style as a director. Finally, I liked how the movie didn't go too over the top with its action sequences. It keeps things very real and grounded.

The biggest issue with the films is that you can definitely feel the lower budget and inexperience of the director at times. Some of the camera shots just seem a little bit off. Something that more seasoned directors don't but as a first-time director just comes with inexperience and a lower budget. I also felt that some of the side characters were a little underdeveloped. There are a couple characters specifically that seem to be set as relevant to the story but then end up being unseen for large chunks of the movie and then show back up when the plot needs them. They aren't given any time to be fleshed out. Finally, the film does slow down a good bit in the middle action. There is a big action sequence in the first act and then the movie goes about an hour before the next action sequence. This wasn't a big issue for me, but if you are expecting John Wick, you'll be disappointed.

Overall, if you don't compare this film to John Wick, it is a solid grounded action thriller. While there are some issues with the film, most of them can be attributed to a lack of director experience. Considering this is Dev Patel's first film, it is a pretty solid foundation.

Score: 7.5/10 Grade: B Recommendation: Check it out