Oscar® nominee Dev Patel (Lion, Slumdog Millionaire) achieves an astonishing, tour-de-force feature directing debut with an action thriller about one man’s quest for vengeance against the corrupt leaders who murdered his mother and continue to systemically victimize the poor and powerless.
Inspired by the legend of Hanuman, an icon embodying strength and courage, Monkey Man stars Patel as Kid, an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash.
After years of suppressed rage, Kid discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
Packed with thrilling and spectacular fight and chase scenes, Monkey Man is directed by Dev Patel from his original story and his screenplay with Paul Angunawela and John Collee (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World).
The film’s international cast includes Sharlto Copley (District 9), Sobhita Dhulipala (Made in Heaven), Pitobash (Million Dollar Arm), Vipin Sharma (Hotel Mumbai), Ashwini Kalsekar (Ek Tha Hero), Adithi Kalkunte (Hotel Mumbai), Sikandar Kher (Aarya) and Makarand Deshpande (RRR).
Monkey Man is produced by Dev Patel, Jomon Thomas (Hotel Mumbai, The Man Who Knew Infinity), Oscar® winner Jordan Peele (Nope, Get Out), Win Rosenfeld (Candyman, Hunters series), Ian Cooper (Nope, Us), Basil Iwanyk (John Wick franchise, Sicario films), Erica Lee (John Wick franchise, Silent Night), Christine Haebler (Shut In, Bones of Crows) and Anjay Nagpal (executive producer of Bombshell, Greyhound).
Inspired by the legend of Hanuman, an icon embodying strength and courage, Monkey Man stars Patel as Kid, an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash.
After years of suppressed rage, Kid discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
Packed with thrilling and spectacular fight and chase scenes, Monkey Man is directed by Dev Patel from his original story and his screenplay with Paul Angunawela and John Collee (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World).
The film’s international cast includes Sharlto Copley (District 9), Sobhita Dhulipala (Made in Heaven), Pitobash (Million Dollar Arm), Vipin Sharma (Hotel Mumbai), Ashwini Kalsekar (Ek Tha Hero), Adithi Kalkunte (Hotel Mumbai), Sikandar Kher (Aarya) and Makarand Deshpande (RRR).
Monkey Man is produced by Dev Patel, Jomon Thomas (Hotel Mumbai, The Man Who Knew Infinity), Oscar® winner Jordan Peele (Nope, Get Out), Win Rosenfeld (Candyman, Hunters series), Ian Cooper (Nope, Us), Basil Iwanyk (John Wick franchise, Sicario films), Erica Lee (John Wick franchise, Silent Night), Christine Haebler (Shut In, Bones of Crows) and Anjay Nagpal (executive producer of Bombshell, Greyhound).
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Short filmTranscript
00:00 There's a quote in the film.
00:02 It goes, "The pain will leave you once it's finished teaching you."
00:06 And that became one of the core tenets that encapsulated the whole film.
00:10 -Are you ready? -Yes.
00:13 Dev pushed himself every day to elevate the world.
00:19 I broke my foot in the middle of an action scene.
00:22 We had to find this medical jet to fly him to this hospital.
00:28 And then I broke my hand.
00:30 He had to get a screw put into the bone here.
00:32 Action!
00:34 I poured all of myself into this.
00:36 Every frame, every beat, every detail.
00:40 And it's been a ferocious process making this film.
00:43 As a child, Dev's grandfather told him the story about Hanuman, the monkey god,
00:50 who symbolizes strength, courage, compassion and kindness.
00:54 You are my Hanuman.
00:57 Dev took the mythology and gave it a spin.
00:59 This is a revenge film about faith.
01:01 Every day, I've prayed for a way to protect the weak.
01:05 I wanted to infuse it with culture and social resonance.
01:11 It becomes this sort of violent ballet that explodes into absolute mayhem.
01:15 One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.
01:20 One small ember can burn down everything.
01:26 You need to fight for your mother, for all of us.
01:30 This is my humble offering to a genre I love so much.
01:36 I'm tipping my hat to filmmakers like Danny Boyle, Park Chan-wook, John Woo, Tarantino,
01:43 Korean revenge films, Bollywood cinema.
01:46 So there's a bit in it for everyone.
01:48 You ready?
01:50 Let's go get it.
01:53 Hanuman!
01:54 It's a fun-bastic, fun ride.
02:00 I think people might be surprised when they see me drenched in blood,
02:07 biting a knife into someone's neck.
02:10 [laughs]
02:11 [music]
02:17 (upbeat music)