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QUICK PLOT SUMMARY:
Animation/Comedy - When a cartoonist is put into a coma following a car accident, he finds himself waking up in the world he created in his cartoon.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13
- The MPAA rated this film PG-13 for crude humor and some nudity
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FAST FACTS:
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| Release Date | .... February 23, 2001 |
| Running Time | .... Aprox. 120 Minutes |
| Genre | .... Animation/Comedy |
| Director | .... Henry Selick |
| Writer | .... Kaja Blackley (graphic novel Dark Town) |
| Writer | .... Sam Hamm |
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Reviewer's Corner
Nightmare Revisited
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No one ever really wants to be a figment of another person's imagination...
Imagine what it would be like, all pent up inside someone's nightmares, only to come out on the illustrated page as ink on the paper. What a drag! How interesting if the objects of our nightmares could actually control what happens to us when we are in a lucid state of consciousness? What's more, how wild it would be if we could simply "dose" ourselves into that nightmare state, so we could face those figments face to face? I believe Timothy Leary has already scratched the surface on that one!
No, Monkeybone is not a film about LSD, but it does come dangerously close to toying with a similar substance known as "nightmare juice".
Monkeybone is about a cartoonist who is enjoying sudden fame over his wacky animated series appropriately titled Monkeybone. A portion of the pilot episode kicks off the film, and sets the precedent with a child who becomes aroused by a teacher's flabby arms, causing him to get an erection, which turns out to be Monkeybone (an actual monkey that jumps out of the boy's pants). I would rank the cartoon right up there with old-school Ren and Stimpy, Beavis and Butthead, and of course South Park (which actually gets a mention in the film). Who else but Comedy Central (one of the film's blatant endorsements by the way) would pick up such a creation? Stu's cartoon gets picked up for a run of six episodes, and everyone wants to get him in on the merchandising scheme. "Here try this, here buy that." Stu is suddenly immersed in marketing angles and Monkeybone dolls, which only freaks him out and makes him want to leave. With plans to propose to his girlfriend Julie that night, Stu rushes her to the car. Unfortunately, Stu's partner has put one of the marketing devices (a huge Monkeybone balloon) into the back seat, which suddenly inflates, and causes the car to spin wildly out of control, crash-landing Stu in a coma, which for him is a world of nightmares called Downtown.
Heading down a rollercoaster into a dark chasm of nothingness, Stu finds his own "psychological baggage" waiting for him, and we learn he has seen many things that have made him an insomniac for fear of his bad dreams, like having seen road kill die as a child. We are catapulted back and forth between the real world and this coma-induced nightmare land Stu is in, much in the way Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and Beetlejuice integrates these techniques. Only for Stu, this scary clown world doesn't make him want to make wisecracks, it only makes him want to escape. Meanwhile Julie waits by Stu's bedside in hopes he will recover, but quickly learns that time (and Stu's family) is not on her side.
What almost saves Monkeybone is the fact that just when you think you know where the plot is headed, everything changes, and a whole new course of action is required. I was happily surprised at the double-crossing twist and found myself drawn in at that point. I don't want to spoil it for you (if the trailers haven't already), so I will only say the twist had great promise, but doesn't really deliver the goods. When Whoopi Goldberg shows up as Death, Monkeybone starts to feel more like Kids In The Hall's Brain Candy, or even worse, a really bad Saturday Night Live skit. Maybe because at one point we get to enjoy Dave Foley running around naked with a purple face screaming that his tie just attacked him? Or maybe it is because at one point an organ donor corpse (played by SNL regular Chris Kattan) springs to life and drops his internal organs on innocent bystanders in various tasteless ways? Some great special effects make the film worth watching, but the acting just stinks. Brendan Fraser is lukewarm at his hottest. Bridget Fonda, who is usually a gem, is seriously lacking any legroom to work, and consequently doesn't have a real chance to shine. And how did Megan Mullally land the part of Stu's sister Kimmy? Her presence practically ruined the entire film for me. You can almost see Fonda wince as Mullally blandly delivers her lines.
Monkeybone director Henry Selick was also responsible for two monumental classic animation films, James and the Giant Peach, and The Nightmare Before Christmas, which explains why Monkeybone is full of quality animation that feels vaguely familiar. Selick has worked with Tim Burton extensively, and it shows. The movie features a Danny Elfman style-score, music that now seems rather cliché these days. Selick's choice to use "In The Afterlife", is another of many borrowed elements from films like Beetlejuice that reminds us we have been down this road of nightmares before.
Reviewed by C.A. Batchelor
What do YOU think? -- February 27, 2001
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WHO SHOULD SEE THIS MOVIE:
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- AS A DATE MOVIE
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- Probably OK - Since this film is a love story ultimately, one might consider Monkeybone to be a good date movie. However, this is a dark comedy with a sketchy, unbelievable plot that will likely only appeal to those who are into special effects, animation and movies like Beetlejuice.
- CHICK FLICK
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- Probably OK - Women will find much of Monkeybone's humor to be crass and tasteless, and will be upset if they made the mistake of bringing their little ones to see this sex-crazed dark comedy. Still, the gals that find Brendan Fraser desirable will like his monkey mating ritual and his rendition of "Brick House".
- GUYS MOVIE
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- Probably OK - Since Monkeybone is about a man's uncontrollable libido the guys will probably be able to relate on some level to this film. The artwork is fairly fascinating and should make it worth sitting through a Brendan Fraser movie for animation buffs.
- CHILDREN
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- Poor Bet - Monkeybone is a perfect example of how movies target an audience that is too young to see it, for the sake of toy merchandising. Parents are likely to see Monkeybone happy meals and the like, which will definitely make the kids want to see this animated comedy. Parents BEWARE: this film is all about sex, offers pretty disturbing nightmare imagery, has its share of profanity, and is not appropriate for young viewers.
- TEENAGERS
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- Good Bet - Teens will get the most giggles out of this naughty little film that depicts a cartoon monkey coming out of a boy's pants and taking over his life. Too naughty for the little ones, but perfect for teens over 14. Parents should be aware that Monkeybone should probably have gotten an R rating, but never completely crosses the line where sex and violence is concerned.
- GENERATION X
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- Maybe - This group is often highly critical of the art of animation, and requires more than just computer generated claymation to be impressed by digital wizardry. Monkeybone has some memorable animated moments, and the artwork is worth seeing. Short of that, this film seems like a distant third cousin to movies like Beetlejuice and Nightmare Before Christmas, which will either work for Gen Xers, or come across as a disappointing rehash.
- BABY BOOMERS
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- Probably OK - Well, Boomers...tired of seeing the same old drivel? Monkeybone certainly appears to offer something completely wacko and different that will either suspend or offend. Chances are Boomers will be reminded of Tim Burton's work, intrigued by the weird artwork and might only appreciate the few instances where Whoopi Goldberg shows up as Death, and Stephen King complains about his own personal figment, Cujo.
- MATURE AUDIENCES
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- Poor Bet - Grandma will probably think the kitty surgeons are a hoot, but is liable to be turned off by the overt sexual nature of this wolf in sheep's clothing. Some decent special effects are worth a look. Marketed like a family animation flick, but in fact pretty obscene, Monkeybone might make the elders laugh, providing they don't bring the grand kids.
- INTELLECTUALS
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- Poor Bet - Clever movie goers will find the whole story to be a contrived bunch of bull. If they are animation fans, they will probably enjoy Monkeybone regardless of how much it feels like Beetlejuice and The Nightmare Before Christmas. If they want something to discuss after the film, chances are the intellectuals will only be talking about how bad the supporting cast is, how unoriginal the score is, and how milktoast Brendan Fraser is when he's trying to be hot and sexy.
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WHAT PARENTS SHOULD CONSIDER BEFORE THEIR CHILDREN SEE THIS MOVIE:
MOVIE DETAILS:
- VIOLENT ACTS
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- Abundant - In a cartoon kids pound nails in a child's head; a driver loses control of his car and crashes hard, landing him in a coma (he has a bloody head wound); a man is reminded that he saw roadkill die as a child; a drawing shows a monkey with a gun in its mouth; several drawings show explicit nightmares that could prove disturbing to sensitive viewers; a woman on tv falls and screams loud; a woman known as Death's head blows off her body (not graphic, really) but her assistants have several more heads for her, and screw another back on to her body (after dropping another and breaking it first); a man melts into a picture and lands into a weird claymation world where he is a split up turnip on a surgical gurney, and several really weird creatures all move in on him, one being a weird one eyed doctor with a huge saw in his hand; the monkey hits a man over the head and takes something from him; a dog bites a man hard; a man throws something that hits his girlfriend in the face; a man hits his head on a headboard; a weird devil like creature plays golf with a man's head, and sends it flying, causing the man to wake up as he falls out of the bed with a bloody nose; a cat woman attacks a rat person and is shown at his side, with a bloody mouth as the creature shakes as if in shock; Death puts a man on the rack as a punishment; a man is told to bend over so he can be kicked back into the real world.
- SEX/NUDITY
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- Abundant - In a cartoon the following happens: A woman scratches her behind; a narrator suggests that as a child he was "aroused" by a teacher's flabby arms, and the boy begins to get an erection in his pants, which the other kids point and laugh at (actually his monkey friend comes out of his pants instead and jumps up to kiss the teacher. The rest of the movie goes like this: a couple kiss; a claymation/animated monkey dressed like Marilyn Monroe pulls his ears off and blows them into balls and puts them in its dress, making it look endowed with breasts; the same monkey makes continuous sexual advances, innuendoes and double entendres throughout the film, including mention that the person who drew him forgot to "endow him" (referring to genitalia); a cat woman waitress shows off busty cleavage and acts seductively; a man in the animated nightmare world tells someone he is going to "choke my monkey", meaning literally to stop the monkey, but since the animal in the nightmare seems more to be a symbol of his libido, the reference could be taken as a double entendre to mean masturbation; a man coming out of a coma sits up and checks under the sheets to see if he has genitalia, and then begins whooping for joy; a man sits in his room and notices his girlfriend taking a shower (her form is seen, nudity implied), but is more interested in the monkeys doing it on television (shows monkeys mating for an extended period, pretty graphic); a woman opens her robe and wraps her arms and the robe around her boyfriend, pressing her nude body against him (no nudity shown); the song "Let's Get It On" plays while a man jumps around the bed for his girlfriend, acting sexy, but landing on her and hitting his head on the headboard instead; a man dreams he is running down the beach with a bunch of beautiful bikini clad women; a real monkey gets amorous with a man, and kisses him twice; a cat woman is shown cuddling up to an evil guy; a man thinks his clothes are attacking him and runs naked screaming for everyone to take off their clothes (the man is shown completely nude from behind); a man sings "Brick House" about his girlfriend while sexy scantily clad women dance behind him; a man looks up a woman's skirt; a man kisses a woman two more times; a man confesses to having done "the whole kama sutra twice"; a man hanging from a balloon hits a bus; a cop shoots a balloon causing the men hanging from it to crash hard, and presumably die; a cartoon shows a man's bare behind.
- PROFANITY
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- Some - 2 derogatory references to Deity; 1 old fart; 3 asses; 1 sh-word; 3 hells; 1 "bitchin'"; SOB (said in its entirety); 1 "Ho" (meaning whore); 2 B-words; 2 damns; 1 crap.
- TENSE SCENES
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- Abundant - A plastic blow-up toy in the back seat of a car begins to inflate, causing the driver to lose control of his vehicle; a woman learns that the sister of her comatose boyfriend has given the order to cut his life support; the grim reaper comes to give a nightmare resident a pass to return to the world of the living;
a man is shown his girlfriend's dream, which ends with someone cutting his tube and making him deflate; a scary rollercoaster ride into Death's lair; Death discovers the imposters; a man melts into a picture and lands into a weird claymation world where he is a split up turnip on a surgical gurney, and several really weird creatures all move in on him, one being a weird one eyed doctor with a huge saw in his hand; a family await a man to either come out of his coma or die as a result of their decision to cut his life support; the God of Sleep invades a man's dreams and turns it into a nightmare; a cat woman visits a nightmare jail inmate, but a mean rat guard breaks it up; a man comes back to life as a corpse and must make his girlfriend believe that the person inside his real body isn't him; a man goes into a nightmare and goes crazy; surgeons chase an organ donor for what they fel is rightfully theirs; a final chase scene.
- IMMORAL/ILLEGAL BEHAVIORS
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- Some - Greed; theft; selfish ulterior motives and underhandedness; unethical/illegal medical procedures; breaking and entering; gambling on people's lives.
- QUESTIONABLE CONTENT / UNHEALTHY BEHAVIORS
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- Abundant - A fast food chain is said to have been in trouble for "rat gutts" and "pig gutts" into their food (later someone is eating their food and actually finds gutts in it); people drink at a party; a sister seems eager to pull the plug on her comatose brother's life support; a claymation snake smokes a cigar; an old man in a wheelchair drinks a "coma-tini"; a woman injects a man in the neck with a "nightmare solution"; when a woman shows her boyfriend the cake she made him, he grabs a whole handful and shoves it in his mouth like a savage; a couple has some champagne; a toy monkey has a special feature that allows his thumb to be put in its behind, and when pulled out, makes the toy simulate flatulation in the form of a weird gas. Later someone changes the original gas for a nightmare inducing one that makes their face purple (this could be seen as an LSD type reference, considering its effect on those who start out awake); a dead organ donor in the midst of having his organs surgically removed, suddenly springs back to life, and has to crack his neck several times to get it to support his head, finally using duct tape to keep it together, and to keep his open incision from allowing any more organs to fall out (which they eventually do as he is running and hanging from a huge helium balloon in the air - one falls on a BBQ, but docs get it before it is ruined, another is caught by a boy running out for a football pass, and the last one is run over by a lawnmower --kind of gross!); a rotting reanimated corpse sits on a bus and makes people sick from the stench; a man thinks his clothes are attacking him and runs naked screaming for everyone to take off their clothes.
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- Children's Value Rating
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Too many disturbing images and sexual references for this to be ok for anyone 14 and under.
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