Slightly too long, but pretty much every other element of <em>'Monkey Man'</em> is more than enough to compensate. I had a very good time watching what is Dev Patel's directorial debut. He himself is outstanding, having portrayed the role of the titular character perfectly. I had only seen the guy in two films (<em>'Slumdog Millionaire'</em> & <em>'The Last Airbender'</em>) prior to this, so very much happy to see him act further. An excellent job from him on and off screen, I'm happy that he managed to get this made in the end. As noted, I do think the run time could've been trimmed a little. It's not a major issue of mine, at all, but at a few moments I did feel my interest wane a bit. The story itself is a good one though, one that is entwined with a lot of fight (literally) but a lot of feeling too. Visually, it's a beauty. As for those behind Patel, Pitobash and Vipin Sharma are positives; Ashwini Kalsekar does well too. Most definitely worth a watch, especially on the big screen! I enjoyed myself, all in all.

Dev Patel has spoken a lot about him not wanting to be "James Bond" but it looks like those stories have inspired quite a bit of this pretty derivative revenge thriller that actually reminded me a bit of his "Hotel Mumbai" (2018) outing too. We know that he ("Kid") routinely dons a monkey mask for some wrestling and he duly gets a pasting - but that this all has purpose. That purpose starts to come together when he manages to organise a subtle sting operation on "Queenie" (Ashwini Kalsekar) who runs an high-end gentleman's club. His reward here is a job. In the kitchens, bleaching the toilets and washing the pots. A means to an end though as he befriends the drug-pusher "Alphonso" (Pitobash) - who has a nifty, turbo-charged, tuk-tuk, and is soon elevated to the rank of waiter to the corrupt and profligate of city society who frequent the place. Interspersed with his burgeoning career, we begin to see flashbacks of his childhood - and of the brutality that reduced him to his present, vengeful, circumstances. The story is set against a backdrop of political turmoil and with an election looming, he becomes aware that there are wheels within wheels and that his principle antagonist is firmly amongst the secular and religious plotters. He also finds himself being cared for by a sagely monk "Alpha" (Vipin Sharma) who helps him to focus both his mind and his body as we build to a denouement that can be seen from space by anyone who's ever seen a "John Wick" film. Patel is a charismatic man but that's not what's needed here. That's something just a little more original to keep this over-long two hours from becoming just a bit dull and procedural. It's not terrible, but it's not really up to much either.

This movie is a boring John Wick wannabe (they literally mention John Wick in the movie). The action sucks, the cinematography is nauseating, the story is boring. There's nothing good about this movie. I'm convinced the high reviews are probably from Indians, as they like to rate shit movies highly. If you're not Indian, don't waste your time on this crap.

an amazingly impressive directorial debut from Dev Patel that blends inspired action sequences, Hindu folklore and a political message of corrupt government officials, with a very well written and emotional script

Monkey Man might be thematically Incoherent, but it's action is just so insane and grimey that you can't help but enjoy the killer debut. There is clear potential in Dev Patel's direction, he utilizes dynamic and powerful camera work without sacrificing too much clarity, and instills beauty and warmth besides all the rage, violence, and savage brutality of his fights. I also like how clear the character development is shown throughout this movie, by using both cinematography and choreography to showcase his growth from sloppy, anxious, and erratic kid to fast, slick, and stylish fighter. You can really feel all of his sloppiness and mistakes in the first half of the movie with how sloppy and shaky the camera work is. It also has a lot of fast cuts between multiple people, and had constant use of blurry and bokeh shots. But once the protagonist trains and heals in the 2nd half, (in a very sick montage btw) we now see much longer takes, much more stable and clear camera work, and has evolved himself into a more methodical, faster, and untouchable no-bullshit fighter who can destroy his opponents with one kick. All of this is just so fucking fun to see, especially for a first time director. And despite a lot of it still needing more refinement, these flaws honestly just makes me more excited for his future projects. Because if this is Patel at his base form, just imagine what happens when he truly unlocks and polishes all of his techniques. In summary, MONKEY MAN is a fucking fun protagonist driven action flick with insane, bloody, and entertaining fight scenes.