The Monkey (2025) | Film Review

If Final Destination had a mascot, it would be The Monkey. Based on Stephen King’s short story, produced by Saw’s James Wan, and directed by Osgood Perkins (Longlegs), The Monkey already has the pedigree of horror movie royalty. But does it work as a fleshed-out film?

Taking place over the span of 25 years from 1999-2024, the film follows twin brothers Hal & Bill (played as children by Christian Convery and as adults by Theo James) as they desperately try to ditch the cursed family heirloom – left to them by their father – known as The Monkey. Once you wind it up and allow this monkey to bang on his drum, someone, somewhere, will be dispensed of in the most sporadically gruesome manner imaginable. You can’t direct nor escape its power, and it’s nearly impossible to get rid of it.

Once we get the setup, the film is off to the races. If you’re looking for something scary, look elsewhere. The Monkey isn’t frightening in the least. It’s more a morbidly bleak comedy – ala Evil Dead 2 – than a true horror film. The comedy arrives from dark, somber moments treated cheekily.

What it IS though, is gory as hell. If you’re a horror fan who just loves gore, this is for you. Creativity is overflowing in the carnage department. Body parts are dismembered, and lives are lost at a healthy clip. Kudos to the prop department for their unnerving monkey toy design, because that might be the sole legitimately terrifying aspect of the entire film.

The casting is spot-on, as Theo James settles in nicely as he ratchets up conflicting identities, each with a vastly different take on what is currently at risk whenever this monkey arrives. While his tone is a bit chaotically all over the map, director Osgood Perkins should also be commended for smoothly combining both performances from his Hal and Bill characters into fully realized characters on the screen. As well delivering several cleverly realized shocks of awe. This can always be a technical struggle, but Perkins seems to have found his rhythm and place in the horror realm.

As for does it work? Yes and no. The comedy occasionally clicks, and the gore certainly does, but there is also a tone that just doesn’t make sense. Why does everything and everyone look like they are stuck in the 70s when we have a specific period over a quarter century? Why do some characters appear completely normal while others are left over from a Coen Brothers movie? For every aspect the film nails, another rises up that is utterly ridiculous.

Is this a new horror classic? Absolutely not. There are too many moments where the film appears completely rudderless as to what story it is trying to tell, or what journey it is driven to take. But if you just want to enjoy a mindless horror flick to giggle at with your friends while being legitimately shocked at the sheer random bloodletting and brutality on display, you might just love The Monkey.