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Overall Rating : 2.5/10
Directed By : Robert Young
F. Murray Abraham (Thir13en Ghosts (2001) )
Matt Reeves
Laura Aikman
Sebastian Armesto (Marie Antoinette)
Supplied By : Genius Products
Film Reviewed By : Rick L. Blalock
Date Reviewed : November 6, 2007
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| PLOT Blood Monkey is a terrifying thriller that follows six American grad students stranded in a jungle and left as prey to a remote tribe of killer chimpanzees. When Dani, Amy, Greg, Sydney, Josh, and Seth arrive in Africa to study apes, they are quickly assured by renowned Professor Hamilton that this is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to witness a new species. But what begins as an historic revelation about animal instinct soon becomes an experiment in human nature when the wilds of Africa turn positively vicious. |
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| THE REVIEW In the Creature Feature, BLOOD MONKEY, it's plot is quite simple. Six Grad Students find them selves let loose in the jungles of Thailand - for what Professor Hamilton promises to be a once in a lifetime experience to witness a new species. What they don't know is that this species, easily provoked, will quickly move in on them making them hunted prey - but was this a sudden occurrence from out of nowhere, or was it a premeditated plan, orchestrated by an individual hoping to exploit the rare breed and their vicious actions? Well, when you see a film with a name like BLOOD MONKEY, and it's cover boasts an oversized picture of a Chimpanzee with blood drenched fangs - more times than not, you know exactly what you're going to get with it. If you are thinking that this is a film in which helpless humans are stranded in the jungle, only to be fed by blood thirsty monkeys you'd be right - but no matter how much fun it may sound, BLOOD MONKEY just isn't. It claims to be more daring than THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, which was a really bold(and brave I might add) move on the part of the studio. Because, no matter how for they go to make this film sound like something new and inventive, it's clear that BLOOD MONKEY is no different than any other film of it's type. The plot has nothing great to offer the viewer, as it is quite boring. For most of the beginning of the film, we have a lot of dialogue and walking in the jungle, and just how much of that can a viewer take before becoming absolutely bored of it? Honestly. there are more "bad" Creature Features than there are good ones, but a majority are so bad that they become entertaining. Part of the reason that these are deemed entertaining is the fact that there is a lot of action on-screen involving these ridiculous creatures that headline the said films. BLOOD MONKEY's main problem is that it tries to take it's plot too serious. It turns the plot into this overdrawn exploration of the Monkey's species, when the audience wants nothing more than to just simply see the monkeys rip people to shreds - that's what the movie is about anyway, isn't it? And when speaking of the "Monkey action" that is the element that this film is supposedly centered around, it's nothing to really be excited about. Most of the killing that happen in this film or shown off-screen, with nothing but a glimpse of the monkey's sharp teeth. We don't actually "see" a monkey in the flesh. so to speak until the final scene of the film - in which it is CGI'ed and not appealing, nor realistic - since I was forced to wait until the final moments of the film to see what these Monkeys were all about, I was expecting something at least more realistic. The characters here are your typical rundown for just about about any Horror or Sci-Fi movie to come out these days, especially within the direct-to-video market. Each character is different than the other whether it be that they are a knowledgeable genius compared to the others, or what have you - and I was quick to notice that in just about every one of these, there is the girl whom worries about her looks, if in such scenario as this when they are all bound to get dirty in the jungle somehow. The acting is easily forgettable by all, but maybe not so much by F. Murray Abraham, whom has won an Oscar. It begs me to question as to why he'd even want to even participate in a film like this. He is good here, but the fact here is that he is too good. The subject matter for BLOOD MONKEY is so silly that it isn't necessarily necessary to give your best performance. because the film is likely to do not much in return to reward you for it. br> BLOOD MONKEY is a film with a rather slow plot, with really nothing new to add to it's sub-genre. I was hoping to find something to enjoy about it, yet I was never able to escape the slow plot, as there was a lot of build-up but nothing ever came out of it in my opinion. |
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| GORE
METER 2.5/10 All I seem to remember being shown on screen is a girl getting her face torn off by a monkey - the rest of the films gore is done off-screen. |
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| MUSICAL
SCORE 3.5/10 Mostly generic sounding "jungle adventure scoring", with some softer scoring occasionally. | ||||
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| OVERALL
IMPRESSION OF THE FILM BLOOD MONKEY, although it sounds fun, it actually isn't. It tries to build up to a big conclusion that just doesn't impress in the end. With so many other Creature Features like BLOOD MONKEY, it wouldn't be difficult to find a better, more enjoyable alternative. This DVD will be available November 6, 2007 |
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