Who’s Your Monkey?

Who’s Your Monkey?
Scott Grimes, Jason London, Scott Michael
David Deluise, Ali Hillis
Directed by Todd Breau
Screen Media Films 2008
In theatres March 28, 2008
DVD May 6, 2008

Who’s Your Monkey? is a great buddy body comedy.

A close friend once said a real friend will help you get rid of the body. It is the premise here with a bit of a road movie.

As premises go it is not new but what makes this comedy work is the situations are original and the characters are extremely believable.

Real male friends tell each other off, make fun of their foibles, and call each other names. Bobby, Mark, Hutto, and Laith are that close. Are they close enough to get rid of the body?

You immediately know you are in good hands with director Todd Breau.

He quickly establishes who is who and the fact this is going to be an unusual and funny movie. Right off the bat the movie shows it will feature solid writing and acting.

There are also those little comic details that even early on tell you this is going to be a great and original comedy: Drug guy and animal porn producer Reed drives a Mini in which his film stars; a smart blonde, two dogs, a duck, a monkey, and a goat, are riding shotgun.

THE SYNOPSIS, NO SPOILERS:

Mark, the doctor in the foursome, can no longer practice medicine because his insurance skyrocketed. Bobby is getting over the death of his wife in a darkly comic accident. Laith, the target of most jibes, is dating someone way out of his league. Hutto is going to be a father in the next few minutes, days, weeks, or months as his wife is way late in her pregnancy. The three friends try to save Mark from becoming a meth producer for Reed. This intervention involves a Ninja star and a dead body the guys must get rid of.

Getting rid of Reed gets a little complicated, of course, but the complications are funny, over the top, a little crude, and, again, original, especially the water wings.

Who’s Your Monkey? is a low budget independent film.

Normally, this means writing with crayons, a director busier showing off his recently acquired and misunderstood film school skills than making a movie, actors who only got a part because they slept with or are related to the director, or both, and jokes only someone on the set understood.

This is not at all the case here. The only real weak point is Reed, the local drug lord and animal porn producer, speaks like a drunk boxer still wearing his mouth guard.

The only element that really betrays the low budget here is the lighting is a little off sometimes.

This is a cool, original comedy with one hell of a kicker near the end.

The last scene did leave me wondering. Make sure you see it in theatres or on DVD. Preferably with your best buddy.

I hope they make a CD of the soundtrack because even the music is funny at times

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