Monkey Man

Dev Patel hat sich in einer neuen kreativen Rolle etabliert und es ist klar, dass mit ihm in Zukunft auch in anderen Bereichen als nur schauspielerischen Positionen gerechnet werden kann. Damit hat Monkey Man seine Rolle erfüllt. (03.04.2024)

Wer auf ein actiongeladenes und intensives Erlebnis wartet, wird zwangsläufig enttäuscht sein, auch wenn ich mich nicht mehr erinnern kann, wann ich zuletzt einen Film gesehen habe, der eine so reine und greifbare Wut ausstrahlt. Patel hat eigentlich eine zerbrechliche Geschichte über eine brutale Rache gedreht, die auf der Basis des Mythos über den Affenkönig dem zeitgenössischen Indien und seinen sozialen Kluften und Ungerechtigkeiten droht. Es ist ein erfrischender Film, der keinen Macho-Rächer aufbaut, sondern eine Figur, die zuerst ihre männliche und weibliche Seite ausgleichen muss, um (als Affenfaust) zur Gerechtigkeit zu werden. Monkey Man mythologisiert schön, arbeitet mit der Antithese des Bildes von Indien als Land des Lichts, der Düfte und Farben, wie wir es aus dem fürchterlichen Film Slumdog Millionär kennen. Dev Patel spielt in beiden Rollen voll mit. Schauspielerisch intensiv, in der Regie einfallsreich – allein schon wie der Film den Stil originell verändert und die gleiche Geschichte zweimal erzählt, hat mich zuverlässig gefesselt. Das Motiv der Mutterschaft und die daraus resultierende Zerbrechlichkeit des modernen Hanumans haben mich auch emotional erwischt. Das Ergebnis? Ein Film, der zwar mit Action sparsam umgeht, aber keineswegs karg erscheint. Er kämpft sich genauso wie der Hauptcharakter ehrlich durch seine Momente. Der Affe hat mich umgehauen. (05.04.2024)

Where John Wick is all about fancy choreography and nicely shot bombastic action, Monkey Man adds a more human hero with motivations closer to my own, animalism, an unadorned and attractive setting in India, mysticism, and thought-provoking social themes (even if those are only lightly pitched). Yeah, I can enjoy an "action movie" in this form. Audiovisually top notch, a fantastic directorial debut. (05.04.2024)

Some good revenge flick has spawned a child with Slumdog Millionaire and emerged with a confident directorial debut that is anything but a simple action flick for housewives to iron their laundry. Dev Patel also approaches even the usual scenes in his own original way, so that even an ordinary training montage is brimming with ideas that won't soon get stale, and the action sequences themselves, which the film spares, demonstrate imaginative choreography. The cinematography is brimming with over-stylised colours and I liked how the mental processes in the protagonist's face are originally portrayed through cartoonish images. But where the story of the monkey man breaks out of the usual genre pigeonholes is its socially critical feel. India, though beautiful, is actually a harsh country with huge social divides where even within the same neighbourhood you can find luxury and abject poverty side by side, and Patel beautifully highlights and critiques this. There is the luxury of modern skyscrapers and right next to it a neighbourhood of dingy slums with crowded, cramped alleys. But the poor here are not in the position of those who bemoan their status, but as someone who has a rich inner life with faith in their Indian deities. Unexpectedly, you learn more about Indian society from this film than the shallow fairy tale of the aforementioned Millionaire, which also wanted to be a social probe, but stuck with the fairy tale. Sure, not everything Patel does is up to scratch – for instance, the elevator fight to the completely unsuitable accompaniment of Boney M is one of the most bizarre things I've seen in the action genre, and I don't mean that in a good way. But those are minor things, Dev otherwise handled it with flying colours. (09.09.2024)

Good stuff, though a little different than I expected. Dev Patel turned out to be a good action hero, but more importantly he managed to show his talent as a director. He knows how to play with visuals and over-stylized colours, beautifully evoking the feeling of two worlds in an Indian metropolis, and he's totally confident and assured in action. He makes imaginative use of camera and editing, as well as cover versions of 80s songs, and he's not afraid of blood in the slightest. Monkey Man is very much a gritty spectacle, and in the action scenes it recalls The Raid or Ong-bak, and Tom Yum Goong with Tony Jaa in its dirtiness and uncompromising nature. So it's rather disappointing that all this visual and action deliciousness is based on the most banal revenge story, there are virtually no supporting characters and the Indian mysticism has perhaps too much space for my taste. Moreover, it doesn't really get going properly until somewhere around the middle, so I left the cinema feeling that I might not have gotten quite what I was hoping for. As a debut, however, Monkey Man is mature, imaginative and clearly acted and filmed with gusto. As an action filmmaker, Dev Patel will definitely interest me. (02.04.2024)