Lisa Johnson Mandell’s The Monkey review says esteemed horror director Osgood Perkins takes a swing at comedy and gets a bit tangled in the vines, but in the end can be forgiven.

Everybody dies.

That’s the theme of director Osgood Perkins‘ kooky new horror comedy The Monkey.

The fact that the film is decidedly retro camp comes as a bit of a surprise, since most of Perkins’ previous work is moody and deadly serious. Last year’s horror hit Longlegs, with Nicolas Cage, is exhibit A. Perkins, by the way, is the son of Psycho star Anthony Perkins. Seems the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, as Osgood also started his film career as an actor.

The Monkey is loosely based on the Steven King short story from a compilation in Skeleton Crew, about a windup monkey toy that bangs a drum (in the King story its cymbals). When the drumstick comes down, someone dies—usually in a peculiar way.

The Monkey review — Aping 60’s comedies

The movie gets off to a rollicking start with bright, retro credits, followed by a father (a great cameo from Severance‘s Adam Scott) trying to return the creepy sapien to the vintage shop where he purchased it.  “Don’t let the drumstick drop!” he warns the shop owner. So of course the shop owner winds it up, the monkey starts playing the drum, and a crazy, Final Destination-like death occurs.

Next we see twin brothers Hal and Bill going through their father’s junk closet, soon after he’s passed away. Of course they find the monkey in a box, of course they wind it up, and of course a death occurs, which fuels a family rift that lasts for decades.

Fast forward 25 years, and that damn monkey surfaces again. This time, the twin brothers are all grown up, both played by the devastatingly handsome Theo James, (Divergent, The Gentlemen—Guy Ritchie’s extraordinary Netflix series). That casting is a massive misstep on the part of the director.  It’s almost impossible to buy sexy straight man James as dense, awkward, loser-ish twin brothers with terrible haircuts.

What follows is a macabre family reunion of sorts, with another bloody, flaming murder rampage. It’s all very loosely tied together and doesn’t make much sense, but I don’t think sense, or a tight and coherent plot, is really the point here. It’s more of a collection of moment to moment scenes that don’t always add up, but seldom fail to entertain.

Rated R

1 Hour 38 Minutes

The Monkey review (trailer): Warning: this The Monkey trailer is funnier and more stylish than the actual film.

Lisa Johnson Mandell’s The Monkey review says esteemed horror director Osgood Perkins takes a swing at comedy and gets a bit tangled in the vines, but in the end can be forgiven.