The highly anticipated Indian action film Monkey Man finally arrives in our cinemas this Wednesday, April 17. Directed and starring Dev Patel, revealed in Slumdog Millionaire, this feature film promises to dynamite the genre with a gripping plot and spectacular action scenes. Monkey Man is already shaping up to be the best action film of recent years.
A hero seeking revenge in a corrupt India
Monkey Man plunges us into the depths of a India plagued by corruption and inequality.
We follow Kid, a former prisoner played by Dev Patel, who seeks revenge on the powerful who murdered his family years earlier. A failed boxer, Kid will infiltrate the local underworld and confront the crooked police chief, played by Sikander Kherto satisfy his thirst for justice.
Martial arts fights of incredible brutality
If comparisons with John Wick are going well, Monkey Man stands out for its typically Indian atmosphere and the raw violence of his clashes. THE fight sceneschoreographed with striking realism, rely on a visceral brutality more than a glamorous aestheticization.
Dev Patel delivers a impressive physical performance in the shoes of this merciless hero who does not hesitate to crush necks and explode skulls.
And when you know the ordeal that filming was, the result is all the more stunning!
A harsh criticism of Indian society
Beyond the show, Monkey Man also develops a sharp social and political criticism of contemporary India.
The film unabashedly denounces the caste systemthere endemic corruptionTHE violence against women and the human trafficking. A healthy and justified anger carried by the rage of its main character, even if the words sometimes lack nuance and lapse into a miserabilist darkness.
A rough construction of formwork
For his time behind the camera, Dev Patel opts for a nervous stagingcarried by a feverish shoulder camera and one frantic editing which sticks to the action. If the influence of Hong Kong cinema is obvious, it is tinged with a Indian identity with some references to Hindu mythology.
The whole thing is choppy but devilishly effective, served by an electrifying soundtrack by Jed Kurzel (Macbeth).
Results: a filmic uppercut
Certainly imperfect in its somewhat stereotypical writing, Monkey Man still strikes a pleasurable uppercut.
Carried by an incandescent Dev Patel and fights of delightful savagery, this first production stands out as a worthy representative of Indian action cinema modern and committed. Sensitive souls refrain, others will rush to see this release of joy, catharsis which sends right-thinking morality flying with loud blows of mandals. A great show as we like it!
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