The Monkey

The funniest, goriest, blood drenched Stephen King adaption in memory, THE MONKEY proves that Writer/Director Osgood Perkins is one really twisted, fascinating filmmaker.

Last year, his hit "Longlegs" proved to be an original, thrilling take on a serial killer drama, filled with dread & laughs.

He's upped the humor quotient this time around, pounding home laugh-out-loud, horrific moments of violent, in-your-face horror.

I loved every crazy, over the top moment of it.

We meet young twins Hal and Bill, played as two very different kids by Christian Convery (Cocaine Bear). Hal is innocent, kind and picked on. Bill is a crude, mean, minutes older sibling, torturing Hal with constant verbal abuse. Their Dad (Adam Scott delivering a hilarious cameo in the opening scene) has failed to get rid of a wind up, drum playing monkey. This evil little toy ("never call it a toy!!") is impossible to get rid of, no matter how hard you try.

Every time the key in its back is wound up and he hits the drum, somebody dies. And I'm not talking a quiet heart attack.

Perkins has way too much funny, perverse flair as a filmmaker to offer up routine deaths. Bodies explode, intestines are pulled out and cast across a room, heads are destroyed by close-range shotgun blasts, baby carriages catch on fire....

Not since the first two, original "Omen" films have inventive deaths been this entertaining in the horror genre. At one point, a character suffers three freak accidents in the span of about ten seconds and I have to admit, I laughed my ass off, they were so perfectly staged.

Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) is a huge asset as the boys Mom, Lois. Her attitude toward marriage and death is one for the ages. In any other film, she'd be a lunatic fringe parent. In Perkins world, she's brilliantly the normal core, the comforting center of the boy's life.

But no one lives too long when that Monkey gets wound.

A meal at Benihana has never been this lethal.

At one of my favorite points in the film, there are so many crazy, gory deaths that Perkins just jump cuts from one character warning what might happen to another funeral. The entire audience erupted in a huge laugh, Perkins timing is flawless.

The kids manage to get rid of the monkey for 25 years and the film flashes forward to a now grown up Hal, working in a tiny grocery store and hiding from the world so that no one close to him gets killed.

Now played by Theo James, (Divergent) Hal seems to have lost contact with his brother (good riddance) AND the monkey. He's planning for his one week a month with his out of wedlock son Petey (Colin O'Brien).

Lucky for us, absolutely mad brother Bill and that damn monkey come back into play.

Like the King short story on which it's based, every corner is filled with unique supporting characters. But Perkins has taken these bit characters and added many levels of twisted to them, creating a parade of odd folks that serve as fodder for laughs or the monkey's bloodlust.

Perkins casts himself in a small part as the boys Uncle Chip. He looks like Bruce Campbell as Elvis, all bad hairpieces and sideburns that have taken over his face. His comforting talk on the staircase to young Hal is a comic highlight.

Elijah Wood (Lord of the Rings) is at his quirky best as Petey's step dad. He's the BEST dad, and he'll tell you all about it.

Nicco Del Rio also delivers as the worst Catholic Priest ever to take the pulpit. You'd think with as many funerals as he has to do in this tiny Maine town, he might be good at it. Hilariously, he's not.

The final half hour spins out into absolute madness, most of which works well if you give into Osgood's brilliantly bonkers vibe. Just watch out when that monkey gets wound too tight and starts beating the shit out of that drum. That's a whole lot of dying at once.

Edo Van Breemen's music score and Perkins choice of period songs combine for a perfect duet of blood soaked tunes that add to the atmosphere. King's Constant Readers know how much he uses songs and lyrics within his novels. Those same fans will also find plenty of Easter eggs tied to King's other works. The boy's babysitter has a fascinating name, for example.

With "Longlegs", Perkins proved he could deliver a unique, mainstream horror hit. With THE MONKEY, he proves that his first time out wasn't a fluke. He's got talent, creativity and gallons of blood to spill.

Somebody wind him up again, I can't wait to see what he does next.

THE MONKEY gets a B+, in perfect tune with my sick sense of humor.

Or as the boys Mom tells them in a comforting tone, "Everybody dies. Some of us peacefully and in our sleep, and some of us... horribly. And that's life."

Mom knows best.

Here's the R rated, red band trailer in all its gory glory.