Monkey Man: A New Type of Action Movie

The best underdog film I've seen in years.

I watched seven of Dev Patel’s press tour interviews leading up to the premiere of this film.

He told the same stories in most interviews, yet I couldn’t help but tune in when I saw his face in the thumbnails. Not only because Hollywood refuses to give anything but minimal detail on projects but because Dev is such a captivating being.

The interview that drove me to purchase two movie tickets (both for myself on separate dates) was his 16-minute, 47-second two-way interview with Jordan Peele. This interview shed light on what it’s actually like chasing your dreams, the good, bad, and ugly, and why you should always bet on yourself.

Dev spent ten years writing, developing, and mastering this story.

He lived it on-screen before our very eyes.

Monkey Man is about a young man who makes his living off of (terribly) getting beat up every night at an underground fight club. As his suppressed rage boils from childhood, he finds a way to infiltrate his city’s sinister elite. This story pulled inspiration from the Hindu deity Hanuman, the God of courage, strength, wisdom, devotion, and self-discipline.

“I realized [with directing my first movie] I’m going to triple down on my culture.”

During the Monkey Man press tour, Dev has been very open about feeling ashamed of the Indian part of his heritage while growing up. As a kid, fitting in is paramount. As a performer, being liked is paramount. Though Dev grew up in Harrow, England, where over 25% of residents are of Indian origin, the industry twenty years ago was not as diverse as it is today. Especially not in the action genre, one of his favorite genres.

A big part of growing up as a child is breaking away from being nurtured to find who you are. Contrarily, growing up as an adult often deals with reconnecting to the part you shunned to understand all of your sides. The film beautifully depicts Kid (Dev’s character) reconnecting to the part of his childhood that changed the trajectory of his life to catapult him into the new man he is at the end of the film.

“This film feels like the perfect blend of Bollywood and Hollywood films.”

Aryan, a YouTuber tells Dev during a filmed conversation. Aryan describes the Bollywood aspect as being depicted culturally and politically, while the Hollywood aspects are shown in the high-action moments.

Dev trained for this role, but not in the way you’d think. He was a fighter, but not a Captain America type of fighter, just a normal man. And this was a critical aspect for him to stand on. Unfortunately, his human qualities shined through when he broke his hand on the first day of filming. However, he managed to push through. So—maybe he’s a superhero after all…

**Spoiler Alert**

The film delightfully represents the LGBTQ+ Indian community.

Kid encounters a safe haven with a community that cares about his health, knows themselves, supports his development and mention, AND rides for him.

This is one of my favorite parts of the movie because it isn’t something we see often in Hollywood.

The film has so much to do with social class, but the community within the social class. A frequent theme was togetherness. Kid appeared to be a lone wolf, yet he could always seek refuge in those around him.

**Spoiler Alert Ended**

The film showed elements of music and dance from the Indian culture while integrating hip-hop into the soundtrack and exquisitely choreographed action scenes.

Truly, I walked away from that film feeling like I’d learned something about a different culture.

“Watching the film you can see someone who’s been through a lot.”

Jordan Peele tells Dev in a two-way interview.

When production started, there was no plan for how Monkey Man would be distributed, but before filming ended, Netflix decided to make a deal with Dev and his team to distribute the film. Ultimately, they released the rights because they [likely] didn’t know what they were signing up for.

In hindsight, following specific guidelines and creative notes from a studio that doesn’t quite see your vision wouldn’t lead to a favorable end product. But after years of hard work, this kind of information is a blow to anyone. And that’s where Mr. Peele swoops in to save the day.

After watching the film three times, Jordan orchestrated a call with their agent because he could sense the hardship. After a three-hour conversation, Peele & Monkeypaw Productions was ready to give Money Man the leg up it truly needed.

This film is raw, authentic, and passionate.

Craftily, possibly unintentionally, it merges multiple cultures and styles of filmmaking.

This film amplifies brown, transgender, and underdog voices everywhere.

Monkey Man paves the way for—not only a new type of action film—but filmmaking entirely.