• Monkey Shines (2001)

    Athlete Allan (Jason Beghe) becomes quadriplegic after a horrific traffic accident. His friend Geoffrey (John Pankow), who is conducting experiments with monkeys, offers Allan a well-trained monkey named Ella to keep him company and raise his spirits. But the initially healthy bond, which even enables Allan to form a romantic relationship with Melanie (Kate McNeil), gradually disintegrates once Ella begins to channel Allan's underlying rage and takes it out on his loved ones.

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Monkey Shines
71
metacriticBased on 14 Critics

Release Date: March 10th, 2001

DVD Release Date: September 28th, 1999

R |1 hr 53 min

Plot Summary

Athlete Allan (Jason Beghe) becomes quadriplegic after a horrific traffic accident. His friend Geoffrey (John Pankow), who is conducting experiments with monkeys, offers Allan a well-trained monkey named Ella to keep him company and raise his spirits. But the initially healthy bond, which even enables Allan to form a romantic relationship with Melanie (Kate McNeil), gradually disintegrates once Ella begins to channel Allan's underlying rage and takes it out on his loved ones.

Cast: Jason Beghe, John Pankow, Kate McNeil, Joyce Van Patten, Christine Forrest, Stephen Root

Director: George A. Romero

Genres: Horror

Production Co: Orion Pictures

Keywords: Transformation , Love interest , 1980s , Revenge , House , Murder , Love , Suspenseful

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Ratings & Reviews

  • 75
    Rick GroenThe Globe and Mail (Toronto)

    This is Romero at his best - a set-piece of sustained chills all precisely shot and rhythmically cut, good enough to make us forgive (if not forget) the cast that is merely competent, and an ending that is downright tepid. But even at half-throttle, Romero can quicken the pulse. Worse than it could have been, Monkey Shines is still better than most. [29 July 1988]

  • 63
    Roger EbertChicago Sun-Times

    Romero loses momentum in the closing passages because he has too many loose ends to keep track of. Somewhere within this movie’s two hours or so is hidden an absolutely spellbinding 90-minute thriller. show more

  • 88
    Dave KehrChicago Tribune

    One of Romero's most complex and challenging creations. The film shifts effortlessly between playfulness and outrage, between a distanced irony and an awful, immediate horror. show more

See all critic reviews on metacritic.com