The Monkey is a middling but watchable entry in the 2025 horror slate. It doesn’t reach the high bar set by of Oz Perkin’s best films, nor does it fully honor the emotional undercurrents of King’s original story, but it’s never boring. If nothing else, it reaffirms Perkins as a horror director worth watching—even when the material doesn’t quite land.
‘The Monkey’ Movie Review
The Monkey marks a significant tonal pivot for director Oz Perkins, whose previous film Longlegs was a deeply atmospheric, dread-soaked dive into the world of a demonic serial killer. While both films share Perkins’ distinctive flair for lighting and mood, The Monkey feels like it’s working from a completely different horror playbook—less slow-burn terror, more slapstick carnage. Based on the Stephen King short story, this adaptation is conceptually rich but ultimately thin, buoyed more by style and performance than by story or substance.
The premise is pure King: a cursed toy monkey that beats its cymbals each time someone close to its owner dies. It’s a death omen not unlike the Rube Goldberg-esque fatalism of Final Destination, except this time the instrument of doom is a children’s plaything. The story centers on twin brothers Hal and Bill Shelburn—played in childhood by Christian Convery and in adulthood by Theo James, both tackling dual roles. After the unexplained disappearance of their father (which the opening sequence all but confirms as a violent death), the brothers endure the gruesome loss of their mother, aunt, and uncle—each death triggered by the monkey’s drumming.
As adults, Hal and Bill attempt to confront and destroy the cursed object that’s haunted them for decades. But Perkins infuses the narrative with a wry, often goofy sense of humor that undercuts its horror roots. Unlike Longlegs or Perkin’s gnarly and effective The Blackcoat’s Daughter, where each frame vibrated with unease, The Monkey is content to wink at its own absurdity, layering in lowbrow gags, exaggerated kills, and offbeat performances that lean into the camp of the concept. This might work for some audiences looking for a lighter, bloodier horror ride, but for others, it may feel tonally dissonant.
Despite its issues, Perkins’ visual language remains engaging. His command of light, shadow, and eerie framing lends even the silliest scenes a touch of sophistication. That’s especially true in the early segments of the film, which spend a full 30 minutes setting up the childhood trauma of the Shelburn twins before shifting into their adult lives. It’s a structural choice that could have dragged, but it surprisingly helps reset the stakes and injects new life into the familiar “haunted object” formula.
Where The Monkey falters most is in its script. The character arcs feel undercooked, the dialogue often leans toward caricature, and the humor—while intentional—lands inconsistently. Perkins is clearly swinging for something pulpy and playful, but the tonal balancing act doesn’t quite come together. The deaths, while creatively staged, lack emotional weight because the characters aren’t all that compelling to begin with. There’s an awkwardness to the film’s attempt to juggle grief, horror, and comedy that keeps it from hitting a satisfying emotional or narrative crescendo.
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Still, there’s something admirable about the effort. The Monkey may not be Oz Perkins’ most successful film, but it shows a director willing to stretch his range, to experiment with subgenres, and to try different narrative rhythms. And when adapting a Stephen King short story—especially one as odd and brief as this—there’s only so much room to expand before the core premise starts to wear thin. Perkins just about keeps it together through sheer visual flair and a few clever structural moves.
Score: 5/10
The Monkey (2025)
- Cast: Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Christian Convery, Colin O’Brien, Adam Scott
- Director: Oz Perkins
- Genre: Comedy, Horror
- Runtime: 98 minutes
- Rated: R
- Release Date: February 21, 2025
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