I won't lie: I'm a sucker for nature films. These days, the only times you get to see them are at an IMAX theater in 3-D, and they usually only last 40 minutes, and that's fine. But once a year, right around Earth Day (April 22, by the way), Disneynature puts out these freaking breathtaking films about all manner of creatures, including the latest on Sri Lankan toque macaques called MONKEY KINGDOM, from directors Mark Linfield and Alastair Fothergill, who together or separately made such previous works as CHIMPANZEE, EARTH, AFRICAN CATS, and BEARS.
Okay, yes, the Disneynature people have this slightly annoying habit of foisting a story onto its footage, always narrated by a familiar voice (in this case, Tina Fey), but I honestly don't think the stories are made up. The narrators are often forced into giving dialogue to animals that I was shocked to find out don't actually speak. In MONKEY KINGDOM, a young female who lives on the wrong side of the tree is treated like a mere peasant by her fellow upper-crust monkeys, all living in an abandoned temple. She gets knocked up by a handsome stranger, and is forced to raise her baby boy on her own, seeking food away from the Temple Troop in rather dangerous parts of the jungle.
Later in the film, the tribe is driven away from their jungle home by invading marauders, and they are forced to seek food in the big city. And if you think I'm making any of this up, think again. If these were animated characters, some of this might make sense or be slightly more forgivable. But playing the theme song to the TV series "The Monkees" in the opening of MONKEY KINGDOM is almost too much cute for any one movie screen.
Shot beautifully over three years, the film attempts to capture both the more typical behavior of this brand of macaques, as well as a few unusual moments in their lives, like when a group of low-caste monkeys must go food hunting in a body of water shared with giant monitor lizards, and the outcome of this expedition does not turn out well for all. Other moments—such as those when a monkey must steal from humans—feel outright staged or somehow phony, as if the camera crews asked the street vendors to let the monkey steal from them. I'm sure I'm wrong, but it still doesn't feel authentic.
One of my favorite elements of all Disneynature films are the end credits, where we actually get to see the camera crews interact with their subjects (or try not to), and how they capture such incredible moments on film while staying as hidden as possible. MONKEY KINGDOM manages to stay fairly far away from serious tragedy (not all of these films can), making it fairly kid friendly. And honestly, that's who these films are made for, which doesn't mean adults won't enjoy every second of them. The films are meant as a reminder that humans share the early with tens of thousands of other creatures, some of whom share behavior and physical characteristics with us. These movies are examples of great filmmaking mixed with silly storytelling, but the end result is well worth viewing.
