Osgood (Oz) Perkins made a splash last summer with the horror thriller Longlegs, and he is back less than a year later with The Monkey. Adapted from the Stephen King short story, The Monkey sees Perkins shift into the more comedic and ridiculous. The final result is a modern B-horror gore fest that will be an addition to the midnight horror canon. Far from perfect, Perkins delivers a film that will entertain with its gruesome creativity, even if its tonal shifts don’t always land.
Set initially in 1999, Hal (Christian Covery) is an outcast, bullied at school, and feeling distant from his twin Bill (also played by Christian Covery) and their mother (played expertly by Tatiana Maslany). One day, while going through the belongings left behind by their mysteriously disappeared father, they find a toy monkey. Soon, the brothers discover every time they wind the monkey up and he plays his drum gruesome accidents occur around them. After their attempts at destroying it fail, the twins believe they have contained the evil by throwing it down a well.
The Monkey is a sharp turn from Longlegs for Perkins. While his previous film had absurdist touches, this new project heavily leans into humor and over-the-top violence—a decision that may divide audiences but will appeal to fans of the genre. The Monkey thrives when it leans into absurdism. Perkins has continued to show he is a master at crafting horror set pieces and imagery. His shining moment is the way he crafted the central toy monkey and plays with showcasing it in a sometimes hysterical, sometimes unnerving manner. His strong visual eye for composition and color creates a persistent sense of unease—not in a creepy or unsettling way like his usual projects, but in a way that makes the whole film feel like a bizarre dream, perfectly complementing the more comedic tone.
This is where the cracks start to show. It’s clear that The Monkey is one of Perkins’ first real attempts at this kind of blend, and the film struggles to keep its comedy sharp for the whole runtime. By the third act, the humor starts wearing thin, and the gags begin to blur together. The shocking, nihilistic tone feels fresh at first, but it doesn’t evolve much, making it lose its bite by the end. Likewise, the film leans so heavily on gore and over-the-top kills that they start to feel repetitive rather than shocking.
The Monkey is not just a blood fest and tries to underlie the violence with a story about generational trauma and the inevitability of death. After the initial first act, the movie jumps twenty-five years forward. In the present day, Hal (now played by Theo James) has pushed away everyone in his life—including his twin (also played by James) and his son (Colin O’Brien)—out of fear of the evil returning. He is forced to mend those relationships when the monkey resurfaces and begins its rampage again.
Stephen King is a master at infusing his horror stories with real-life consequences, and Perkins tries to bring those themes to the screen. Unfortunately, this is where the comedic tone works against him. It’s a tricky balancing act, and the movie doesn’t quite pull it off. The dramatic moments feel awkward next to the film’s ridiculous kills. Theo James makes a formidable effort—playing two characters no less—to create emotional stakes, but it’s a losing battle.
The Monkey proves once again that Oz Perkins has an undeniable talent in the horror medium. In the last twelve months, he has delivered two films with incredible highs, striking visuals, and memorable characters. He hasn’t quite figured out how to put all the pieces together. He has the potential to make a truly genre-defining horror film, but The Monkey isn’t quite that. It will live on as a midnight B-movie that satisfies those looking for over-the-top kills, it just doesn’t quite succeed at being more.
Leave a Reply