Don’t mess with Dev Patel in ‘Monkey Man’
Dev Patel’s a triple threat in “Monkey Man.” It’s his feature-directing debut (Patel previously directed two shorts). He came up with the story and helped write the script. He stars.
Make that quadruple threat — threat as in threatening — since Patel’s character, Bobby, is a UFC-style fighter out to avenge the particularly brutal murder from long ago of someone very dear to him. As tends to be the case with UFC-style fighters out to avenge a murder, Bobby is not someone to mess with. The many (many) people who make the mistake of doing so over the course of “Monkey Man” can attest to that, or at least the few who survive can.
Set in contemporary Mumbai (though it was shot in Indonesia), the movie is extremely violent, sometimes sickeningly so. It’s nasty, brutish, and anything but short. There are several contests in the ring. They’re pretty tame compared to what’s seen once Bobby sets off on his mission. A really gruesome fight in a swanky bathroom. A car chase (Bobby’s in a tuk-tuk, a nice touch). A highly improbable escape. A flashback to that murder Bobby wants vengeance for, which we see up close and all too personal. An extended shootout in a nightclub. Various knifings along the way. A date movie “Monkey Man” is not.
It is the rare action movie that draws on Hindu mythology (the tale of the monkey god Hanuman). Fighting in the ring, Bobby wears a monkey mask, hence the film’s title, and the mask is a nod to Hanuman.
“Monkey Man” is the even rarer action movie that’s a commentary on Indian politics. Elections loom as the story takes place, and the strident nationalism of what’s called the “Sovereign Party” sure sounds like that of Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
You know how Barack Obama annually posts his favorite movies of the year? Don’t expect Modi to be putting “Monkey Man” on any list of his. That would be true even if the movie weren’t an attack on the BJP. Its presentation of a society marked by both extreme wealth and extreme poverty is anything but flattering. Of course that situation isn’t exclusive to India.
As a director, Patel does various things that are par for the present-day course: Steadicam, handheld camera, the occasional use of slow motion, even a bit of strobe. None of it feels show-offy, though. The movie may be garishly lit, which fits the settings, but it’s not garishly shot. Patel does one unusual thing, and it’s quite effective. Nearly every scene is tightly framed. This makes it easier to follow the action in a given shot, but it adds to the overall sense of disorientation.
Sharlto Copley plays the fight promoter/ring announcer. On Copley’s passport does it list his occupation as “Screen Bad Guy”? It’s a showy role, though marginal. The real scene stealer is the Indian actor Pitobash. He plays a roostery fixer/gofer, Alphonso — part Danny DeVito, part Luis Guzmán — who’s as close to a sidekick as Bobby has.
That’s not very close. Other than being sheltered by a religious group after escaping from the police, Bobby pretty much entirely goes it alone. “You should have died from these injuries,” the group’s leader tells him. No kidding. “The gods must have a greater plan for you.” Well, that’s one way of looking at it.