Monkey Man

Revenge films have always been popular, and will always be popular. It’s fairly easy to relate to the protagonist: they’re the ultimate in wish fulfillment. Who amongst us hasn’t wished we could get back at someone who wronged us? From some petty grievance, to being professionally undermined, to a true and deeper injustice inflicted upon you. The ease with which we relate to their frustration causes us to grant them the leeway to act how we cannot, how we dare not. Our blood begins pumping as we root them on, even as they inflict brutal violence upon other human beings.

This also makes them a solid template off which to hang some additional ideas, as Patel has done here. We already know the rough shape of the story, which allows our mind to wander through the world, and our eyes to pick up minor details throughout. He imbues the tale with a vein of social commentary, using the fictional world he’s created to hold a mirror up to our own. I just wish it hit a bit harder, and played more directly into the plot, coalescing more to make his point(s) land more strongly.

But I’ll be damned if his style doesn’t make me want to forgive most of it.

Rana Singh (Sikandar Kher) is a bastard, and the chief of police. He hangs out at Kings, a high-end brothel of trafficked women and girls and drug den run by Queenie Kapoor (Ashwini Kalsekar). As such, that’s where Bobby (Dev Patel) needs to be. We learn through flashback that when Bobby was a child, Rana and his goons were sent to throw his family and their community off of their land. Rana did not take kindly to their refusal to go quietly, first killing Bobby’s mother for rejecting his “advances”, then burning down the whole village. All to make way for a religious compound for religious guru Baba Shakti (Makarand Deshpande), whose similarity to real-world PM Narendra Modi and the BJP I’m sure was just coincidence.

Once inside, he forms an uneasy “friendship” with Alphonso (Pitobash), a pit boss of sorts who’s constantly disrespected by…well, everyone who he’s not able to boss around. Bobby’s plan is to work that relationship to land a position in the main room of the brothel, where he’ll have his shot at Rana. Despite the size disparity, Bobby is confident that his ability matches his drive, as he’s spent years in an underground bare-knuckle boxing ring where he fights as the titular Monkey Man.

Through the first half or so, this is a pretty standard revenge movie, just set in a fictional Indian city. All the major beats you expect are there, even the introduction of an ally and potential love-interest named Sita (Sobhita Dhulipala), although as one of Queenie’s captive sex workers she’s not able to aid our hero just yet. Alphonso even serves as the comedic side-kick, adding periodic levity to this largely self-serious film. Here, the filmmaking does a pretty good job of keeping you engaged, as Patel and cinematographer Sharone Meir manage to find some beautiful compositions and shots to frame both the bursts of action and the more downbeat moments. There are many visual allusions to the myth of Hanuman (relayed early in the film for us ignorant Westerners), most notably the recurring image of an orange disc somewhere above, towards which Bobby strives but often bites off more than he can chew.

As you’d expect, this period focuses on both character development and world building. Bobby doesn’t talk much, but his eyes are more than expressive enough to compensate. No matter the situation, no matter how steep the adversity, we see the same fire, the same scrappiness, the same determination. He’s been beaten down, both metaphorically by life and physically in the ring, but he continually climbs to his feet, scars and all.

It’s also here that the social commentary is strongest, simple as it is. We see the way the poor and lower classes are disregarded by the rich, and how in turn the rich are mostly invisible to them, as they occupy a completely different and unobtainable world. There’s all the messiness and complexity and darkness that emerges surrounding Baba Shakti, and a nation in the grips of a religious fanatic content to misuse his power for selfish pursuits. Most central are the corrupt police, who do the bidding of figures they should be throwing in jail, and partake in their illegal and unethical services.

All of that is pretty good, and fun to watch, sure. But that’s when things kick into high gear. I can’t say much without spoilers, so I’ll keep this vague.

After sustaining some pretty brutal injuries, Bobby is taken in and cared for by a persecuted community to whom we’ve previously heard allusions but not had contact with. As he recovers and spends more time with them, he finds additional strength, leading to one of the coolest and most effective training montages I’ve seen in quite a while. Then the climax begins, stretching across twenty or thirty minutes and many locations, and my blood kept pumping harder and harder. I was watching some of the absolute coolest and most exciting and creative fight scenes I’ve seen in American film outside of the John Wick franchise.

They took a very important page from those films: it’s obvious that Patel did a bunch of fight training, and that fight choreographer Brahim Chab is operating at the top of his game. The combat is fresh, it’s frantic, and we get to see a bunch of it. There are a lot of wide shots during the fights in which we clearly see Patel in the fray, and they don’t often cut when strikes land. And he’s selling it. Patel is not built like a modern action movie protagonist: he’s more slender, less bulky. But he puts on just enough muscle here, and carries himself with the swagger and poise that we 100% buy the fury he’s able to unleash, especially after seeing what he’s capable of in that training montage.

One other thing to mention. As I said above, this is a pretty dour film, with some pretty dark events and backstory. So imagine my surprise that it contains one of the funniest scenes in years. I laughed hysterically for a good five minutes in the theater, and I was not alone. What makes it even better is how the central event is drawn out, initially by stillness and stunned silence, then by a very delayed “…wow”. You’ll know it when you see it, and it will be beyond worth it.

I first became aware of Patel as Neal Sampat in The Newsroom. I know, I know: Slumdog Millionare remains a blind spot for me. The point is that if you’d asked me where he’d be in ten years, the kind of nerdy, unassuming desk jockey, I never would have guessed here. Helming his own movie, sure, but not an action movie with gobs of exhilarating style. He’s done a fantastic job of making full use of each opportunity he’s gotten, which is how you go from BAFTA nomination in your screen debut to Academy Award nomination a few years later to impressing Jordan Peele with your directorial debut, all in just over a decade. He’s proven himself time and time again, and this time is no different. It’s not a perfect movie, but it’s damn good, putting it far above average for a debut feature.