Review of Monkey Shines (1988) by Craig T — 08 Feb 2011

Romero usually brings us at lease a moderate success in terror. Even among his bottom of the barrel efforts, he captures our imagination for a while. Here, we have a troubled and paralyzed young man who is coping with his new condition.

Enter Ella the monkey to help him in his day to day activities. She can help him drink, assist in his reading, and she even makes a decent arsonist. It is a mildly creepy concept and you have to hand it to these all these people for at least trying.

Honestly, this had to be a tough sell for any studio. The acting is not worth noting but seeing some early Stanley Tucci is a bonus. This is a guilty pleasure all the way yet its really not even a very good one.

Monkey Shines is comparable to watching a terrible baseball team pull off a close call win. (D).