A team of students travel to the African jungle to assist a renowned scientist named Hamilton (F. Murray Abraham). He thinks he's found something very important: evidence of the existence of a primate with tremendous brain capacity. He will let nothing stand in the way of his agenda. Naturally, the giant ape soon makes its presence known, and then it's open season on Various Expendable Characters.
It becomes clear early on that these young supporting cast members lack any interesting features. So the viewer is already primed and ready to hope for lots of casualties. The trouble is, "Bloodmonkey" isn't even bad enough, or funny enough, to qualify as entertainment if you approach it as typical modern cheese. Mostly, it's just dull, with the filmmakers supposedly making the smart move of never showing the ape (it's largely inferred through vocalizations on the soundtrack, and "Bloodmonkey" p.o.v. shots). The film certainly LOOKS great, having been shot on location in Thailand, but it's atmosphere wasted on a nondescript cast and an uninspired script.
Selling points are few. Seeing Oscar winner Abraham in this sort of rent-paying gig is amusing, and he gives a genuinely enthusiastic performance that outclasses the rest of the film. Also of interest is Prapimporn Kanjunda, cast as Abrahams' henchwoman who revels in evil doings, setting up characters to be bait for the monster.
"Bloodmonkey" features some gore, but maybe not enough to sate the appetites of some viewers. Of course, the young cast members are attractive, but that still doesn't mean that one really cares about their characters.
Unless you're curious about Abrahams' presence, this is *definitely* one feature you can easily skip.
Four out of 10.
It becomes clear early on that these young supporting cast members lack any interesting features. So the viewer is already primed and ready to hope for lots of casualties. The trouble is, "Bloodmonkey" isn't even bad enough, or funny enough, to qualify as entertainment if you approach it as typical modern cheese. Mostly, it's just dull, with the filmmakers supposedly making the smart move of never showing the ape (it's largely inferred through vocalizations on the soundtrack, and "Bloodmonkey" p.o.v. shots). The film certainly LOOKS great, having been shot on location in Thailand, but it's atmosphere wasted on a nondescript cast and an uninspired script.
Selling points are few. Seeing Oscar winner Abraham in this sort of rent-paying gig is amusing, and he gives a genuinely enthusiastic performance that outclasses the rest of the film. Also of interest is Prapimporn Kanjunda, cast as Abrahams' henchwoman who revels in evil doings, setting up characters to be bait for the monster.
"Bloodmonkey" features some gore, but maybe not enough to sate the appetites of some viewers. Of course, the young cast members are attractive, but that still doesn't mean that one really cares about their characters.
Unless you're curious about Abrahams' presence, this is *definitely* one feature you can easily skip.
Four out of 10.