The movie Monkey Man by Dev Patel reminded me of John Wick. And in the movie itself, there is a reference to John Wick when the main lead tries to buy the gun. At one point, when Dev was feeding the dog, I felt like this was somehow following the path of John Wick-”You killed my dog”. But it didn’t.
The movie is wrapped up in gory fight scenes with murder, revenge, oppression, and trauma. If you are looking into something new, you might not get it. But I have to say the movie was executed quite perfectly with the same old ingredients. Well, if you think of an auto-rickshaw zooming along the streets of India with a turbo attached to it, you might get the feel of Fast & Furious as well. Who knows!
Overall, Dev Patel’s acting was top-notch, but when it comes to him directing, I will be bit critic in a way that the movie could have been better paced. I felt like the ending was a bit rushed and they did not get into the depth of the other characters of the movie. It did take a while for Dev’s passion project to kick off, as the production process was halted due to covid and then dilemma about whether it was going to be released in theaters or not. Eventually it did, with the help of Jordan Peele (just google him good people 😀) and his production company’s deal with the big shot Universal. Dev always has a knack and passion for a nice action genre and that’s what happened here. The fight sequence was okayish, nothing out of the ordinary; the end was more like all mirror reflection playing around both fighters, which again reminded me of John Wick.
GO CHECK OUT THE TRAILER-NOT BAD!
The film’s gist was more focused on personal development by tackling childhood trauma and growing stronger through the process and then facing the inner demon rather than being too revenge centric. The plot I would say we have seen many times before, tormented kid, parents dead by the villain, grows up on the street, hardened by life, meeting people that guide him, emerging as a new person, and defeating the villain. It is the same old story with a different way of telling. You will get a reference to the Hindu deity Hanuman and how the child embodies the spirit of Hanuman to fight the seedy rich guys that roam the fictional city of India. You’d see a lot of references to Indian politics and religion throughout the film, and if you are not familiar with them, might feel a bit lost. The ‘Hijra’ (third gender) play a big role in the film, basically taking care of Dev and training him to face his demon.
So if you like gory fight scenes, a revenge-focused script, and some hand-to-hand combat that is quite graphic-the film is definitely for you, and Monkey Man does provide some cinematic gems to its viewer.