Monkey Shines

Monkey Shines follows athlete Allan Mann (Jason Beghe) as he’s confined to a wheelchair after a tragic accident, with the film detailing Allan’s efforts at coping with his newfound disability and, eventually, his relationship with his helper monkey, Ella (Boo). It’s rather interesting to note that for the majority of its (overlong) running time, Monkey Shines plays like a straight drama that’s devoted primarily to Allan’s slow recovery – as filmmaker George A. Romero, working from his own screenplay, spends an almost inordinate amount of time exploring the minutia of the central character’s post-accident existence. And although Romero does test the viewer’s patience with his decision to stress uninvolving subplots (eg Allan’s increasingly strained relationship with his domineering mother (Joyce Van Patten’s Dorothy)), Monkey Shines benefits substantially from its emphasis on Ella’s initial arrival at Allan’s house and his subsequent attempts at forming a bond with the intelligent primate (ie there’s an inherently engrossing quality to such sequences). The creeping inclusion of questionable horror elements (eg Allan’s psychic link with Ella is beyond stupid) ensures that the viewer’s interest begins to dwindle significantly as the movie passes the one-hour mark, although, to be fair, there’s little doubt that the film’s climactic Ella-terrorizes-Allan stretch fares a whole lot better than one might’ve anticipated. By the time the hilarious yet memorable Carrie-esque final shocker rolls around, Monkey Shines has established itself as a passable horror effort that could’ve used a few more passes through the editing bay (ie 113 minutes is just absurd, clearly).

**1/2 out of ****