The Monkey 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

The Monkey 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf July 3, 2025

Last summer, Osgood Perkins scored a surprise box office hit with “Longlegs.” The horror picture wasn’t much different from everything else he’s created, but marketplace magic was certainly on Perkins’s side, enticing people to spend time in a deadly serious world of mystery and evil. A year later, the writer/director is back with “The Monkey,” which is also a tale of mystery and evil, this time sourced from a short story by Stephen King. The iconic genre author required just under forty pages to deliver a strange journey into a cursed life, but Osgood isn’t fully committed to moodiness. Instead, the movie is a presentation of shock value that loses effectiveness the longer it lasts, as Perkins can’t extend King’s ideas for a feature-length offering. He goes spotty with a limp sense of dark humor and gory events, keeping “The Monkey” more about grisly visuals than an engrossing study of dread.

As a child, Hal (Christian Convery) is constantly bothered by his twin brother, Bill (Convery), who lives to torment his “younger” sibling, always ready to insult or humiliate him, while their mother, Lois (Tatiana Maslany), shows little interest in being a responsible parent. Hal and Bill’s father (Adam Scott) has left the family, allowing his children to go through his things, eventually discovering an “Organ Grinder Monkey” doll that plays a drum. Operated by the twist of a key, the monkey comes to life, but once activated, someone is going to die. Hal and Bill gradually learn the power of the toy, desperate to get rid of it. 25 years later, Hal is trying to maintain a low profile, prepared to spend his yearly time with son Petey (Colin O’Brien), who’s about to be adopted by his stepfather (Elijah Wood). However, instead of spending a day at an amusement park, Hal is confronted by the return of the monkey, forced to reconnect with Bill to figure out a way to stop the doll from beginning another killing spree.

The first act of “The Monkey” remains in the past, staying close to Hal as he tries to maintain a peaceful life around his violent twin. He can’t rely on his mother, who’s lost to her own special form of madness, not thrilled to be raising two boys. Hal is struggling in life, and things only grow more complicated when he discovers the monkey in his father’s belongings, encouraged to twist the key and see what the doll does. Perkins creates a potent visual in the toy, which offers dead eyes and a widening grin when it’s switched on. The creation twirls drumsticks and bangs the drum loudly, generating an ominous warning that something horrible is about to happen. And it does, repeatedly, in “The Monkey,” with Hal and Bill’s babysitter the first to encounter a vaguely defined curse, adding her head to a teppanyaki dinner in front of the boys, which commences a nightmare for Hal, who’s more sensitive to the darkness.

“The Monkey” stays with the boys for some time, following their growing awareness that the toy is capable of destroying lives, including their own, sending them to live with relatives (Perkins cameos as a greasy uncle). The monkey summons attacks, and the helmer tries to increase gore as he goes, mixing practical effects and iffy CGI to create viciousness as bodies are blown apart, trampled into goo, and melt from within. Perkins has his violence, which he’s explored in every film he’s made, but “The Monkey” tries to be a little different with intentional humor, though jokes are clumsily staged or too affected to inspire laughs. Eventually, a time jump arrives, returning to Hal as a middle-aged man unsure how to handle his estranged son. Some push for sensitivity is made involving terrible, distant parenting, but Perkins doesn’t really care about these characters, more interested in jolting his audience via plenty of loud sound cues and abrupt edits.

The Monkey 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Screencaps are taken from the Blu-ray

"The Monkey" is certainly a moody picture, with plenty of darkness to share as the tale visits gruesome events. Blacks are passably deep during the viewing experience, preserving most shadowy encounters and evening action. Detail is capable, exploring skin particulars on the cast, and gore zone visits are acceptably textured as body parts go flying and guts are spilled. Costuming is fibrous. Interiors maintain dimension, touring living spaces and churches. Exteriors are decently deep. Colors maintain a muted palette, but more varied hues are found with signage and fashion, including red dresses and vests. Blood is also distinct. Greenery does well, and the monkey keeps its brownish appearance. Skin tones are natural. Highlights are tasteful. Compression is an issue here, as banding and posterization are periodic.

The Monkey 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix secures crisp dialogue exchanges, leading a deeper sense of narration. Emotionality is preserved throughout. Scoring supports with defined instrumentation, and soundtrack selections maintain clear vocals. The sharpness of the Monkey's toy drumming and organ accompaniment is defined. Surrounds explore musical moods and dreamscape visits, also doing well with sound effects, which provide a few panning effects. Low-end perks up with heavier violence and psychological intensity.

The Monkey 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• "Outrageously Gory and Thoroughly Gratuitous" (3:26, HD) is a look at the story of "The Monkey," featuring interviews with writer/director Osgood Perkins, visual effects supervisor Edward Douglas, special effects coordinator Greg Pyne, and actors Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Colin O'Brien, and Christian Convery. The interviewees discuss the wild tone of the material, described here as a "grisly comedy." The featurette also makes a brief visit to the set to watch the execution of a few gory encounters.

• "The Cast of 'The Monkey'" (4:09, HD) examines the thespian effort for the film, featuring interviews with writer/director Osgood Perkins and actors Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Colin O'Brien, and Christian Convery. The featurette highlights creative challenges and on-set comfort provides by Perkins, who also reflects on his acting turn in the movie.

• "Becoming Hal and Bill" (3:14, HD) spotlights work from actor Theo James, who was tasked to portray two characters in "The Monkey," reflecting on the interpretational challenge and technical awareness, dealing with cinematographic technology that matches different performances instantly. Writer/director Osgood Perkins also supplies thoughts on his lead actor.

• "Funeral Gallery" provides a look at three funeral programs created for some of the characters who perish during "The Monkey."

• And an Announcement Teaser (:45, HD), a Teaser Trailer (1:30, HD), and a Theatrical Trailer (2:08, HD) are included.

The Monkey 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Longlegs" was an exercise in unease. "The Monkey" is a carnival ride, and one without much of a story. Perkins doesn't extend King's world with imagination or dramatic power, keeping things fairly simple as adult Hal tries to stop the monkey, reconnecting with his hated sibling along the way. A few supporting characters visit the tale, but add little to the endeavor. And Perkins also visits unreality for a couple of his kills, taking the sting out of sudden death, muting it with unexplained strangeness. The picture means to deal with trauma and the lure of malevolence, but Perkins doesn't follow it in full, and James can't muster much of a meaningful performance, reaching his thespian limitations. "The Monkey" quickly becomes a half-baked joke with a terrible punchline, putting Perkins on a quest to wow with extremity, not score with a sinister premise.