Misunderstood Masterpieces: Monkeybone
Posted by Will Helm on 07.17.2007
or, More of Brendan Frasers Serious Mortality Issues
When Brendan Fraser last found his way into this column, he had just made a deal with the Devil. While things may have turned out for the best in that situation, the spirits of the underworld seemingly had bigger plans for Mr. Fraser and, this time, it involves animation. That's unsurprising as this also happens to be the last film of the "animation for adults" trilogy I have going on. Isn't that wonderfully serendipitous?
Anyway, while Heavy Metal delved into the Freudian id and Cool World revealed the development of the superego, today's film is all about the impulse keeping those two elements in check: the ego. If this doesn't make sense, it will while I describe the happenings in today's film, 2001's Monkeybone. While at first glance a wacky slapstick, there's something more going on: psychology! And that can only mean one thing . . . it may very well be a Misunderstood Masterpiece. Let's find out!
Somewhere in the world, fake monkeys fly and climb while some guy sketches with a grease pencil. After finishing the scene, he paints it . . . and it's a dude, a HOT CHICK, and a monkey. One of these things is not like the others. Somehow, this montage of creation is a bizarre introduction to a strangely post-modern cartoon involving a guy seeing a psychiatrist! Whoa . . . so I am right after all. And here I thought I was just joking around. Anyway, the patient has a flashback about a freaky teacher back in grade school and, while other students hammer nails in his head which has to be symbolic of something he gets his first Erector set. Oh wait . . . it's actually his first erection. Oops. Somehow, when the teacher wants to see his development, the patient's turgid member transforms into a rudely animated monkey, specifically the titular "Monkeybone." So does that mean his junk is prehensile? Weird. And the psychiatrist must think so as, after the patient finishes, the doctor laughs heartily. The end.
Or not, as Dave Foley who's quickly rising to Dan Aykroyd levels in this column reveals that Monkeybone has been awarded a network contract and he introduces the cartoon's dour creator, Stu Miley (Fraser). After a short speech, the network marketing guys descend on Stu like a pack of wolves as they have plenty of ideas for Monkeybone's image and likeness. Stu, as he is a tortured artist at heart, isn't happy with the situation and he lets Dave Foley know. There is a little light in Stu's world, however: his doctor (and girlfriend), Bridget Fonda. To show just how happy she makes him, Stu conspires to leave the party early with her and they even make out a little bit . . . until Dave Foley interrupts. Or he wants in on the action; he's a very hands-on agent.
Actually, the real reason for Dave Foley's appearance is because he wants to show off some lovely merchandise for Stu to test and he even has Stu's car packed with it. Perhaps that's not terribly conducive for driving as a giant, inflatable monkey makes Stu's car go out of control and, while Bridget is mostly unharmed, Stu ends up in a coma. While real Stu heads to the hospital, Stu's unconscious mind takes a rollercoaster ride to the land of nightmares. Ooh . . . scary. On the platform at the end of the ride, Stu's psychological baggage is waiting for him . . . as well as freaky, Claymation animals. So that's what happened to the California Raisins!
Inside nightmare-land proper, which is in the form of a disturbing state fair, Stu is accosted by Joe Camel and a Cyclops. Stu, perhaps to drown his sorrows, retreats to a bar where barmaid Rose McGowan is a feline HOT CHICK. OK . . . so how is that a nightmare? Not only is she a HOT CHICK, she also cleans up well. Unless a HOT CHICK coughing up hairballs is a problem. Then again, it wouldn't be if Stu practiced a little "manscaping." Ahem. In the pub, Stu gets a drink and stop-motion Monkeybone (John Turturro) takes the stage for a bizarre musical number . . . because that's just what this movie needs. Or bestiality, as Monkeybone ends up making out with Stu for no particular reason.
Back in the real world, Stu rests comfortably in a hospital bed while Bridget trims his beard. Things take a sinister turn when Stu's sister (Megan Mullaly) arrives . . . mainly because she wants him dead. The doctor on duty is reluctant but he gives Stu a three-month deadline . . . with an emphasis on "dead." Bridget, quite unhappy with this sinister development, returns home to find a surprise that perhaps doubles her discontent: Stu's Rube Goldberg-inspired marriage proposal. Apparently, not only did Bridget fall in love with Stu and vice versa, she also cured his psychoses and nightmares.
Or perhaps not, as somehow Stu is in nightmare-land and he's moping because he hates his monkey. There are some serious Freudian issues going on, I think. To try and control his monkey, Stu attempts to kidnap it; it works until Rose brings a drink for Stu and, after he confides in her, she hits on him. Somehow, this riles the spirit of Monkeybone which is unsurprising; after all, she is a feline HOT CHICK and the monkey escapes his bounds and molests Rose. Before the monkey can go primitive with Rose, the scene is interrupted by a big dude who looks like he's covered in toilet paper who's in the bar to give an old guy a ticket out of nightmare-land . . . and the exit is through Abraham Lincoln's mouth. OK then.
After the old guy leaves, Stu questions the big guy who's sort of a not-so-grim reaper but the big guy is "off duty." Oh the bureaucratic hilarity! Stu then laments his fate to be trapped in nightmare-land forever. Meanwhile, in the real world, his sister still wants him dead. In nightmare-land, Stu gets an invitation to a pajama party hosted by the lord of the realm. Once there, Stu watches Bridget's dreams, in particular a rather horrible nightmare in which Stu's sister cuts his cord and he deflates. Well, that's rather symbolic. While Bridget wakes from her dreams, Stu is awarded an audience with Hypnos (Giancarlo Esposito), the aforementioned lord of the realm. Hypnos, being "connected," reveals that Stu needs Death to give him a reprieve . . . or he can just "cheat death" by stealing an exit pass out of nightmare-land. Dum-dum-DUM!
In order to enact their grand scheme, Stu and the monkey sneak into the world of Death. Meanwhile, in the real world, Bridget plans on shocking Stu out of his coma with her plot device . . . I mean "nightmare juice." Elsewhere, in the land of Death, Whoopi Goldberg who is, for some reason, Death looks over her recruits for not-so-grim reaper . . . and Stu and the monkey are there in disguise. Of course, Whoopi is not dumb that's why she was always in the center square so she discerns that something is amiss with one of the recruits and she has a little chat with Stu, whose ruse is quickly revealed. Amidst the chaos, Whoopi's head explodes while the monkey absconds with the exit pass; in order to escape the world of Death, Stu and the monkey hitch a ride on a train. This doesn't work out too well as the monkey falls off and Stu gets himself stuck in a disturbing nightmare. Monkeybone rescues him and, once they get back to nightmare-land, he doublecrosses Stu and he takes the exit pass for himself!
Simultaneously with Monkeybone flying off into Stu's empty body, real-world Stu awakens from his coma just before his sister ends his "suffering." Presumably a few weeks later, Bridget takes Monkey Stu home hmm, monkey stew; I wonder if that's popular in Cantonese cuisine? and she has cake and champagne waiting for him. Monkey Stu eschews cutlery or even good table manners and he indulges heartily. His joy at satiating his primitive urges ends abruptly, however, when Bridget reveals that they're getting married! I guess interspecies love is legal in California . . . although there is one species that doesn't love Monkey Stu: his once loving dog, who sees Monkey Stu as an interloper because he knows something's wrong with his former master.
Later that evening or so, Bridget showers slowly and sensually . . . while Monkey Stu watches monkeys mate on television. I guess he has little attraction for the hairless ape. Or not, as Bridget elects to seduce Monkey Stu after her shower and he goes into an elaborate mating dance to better show off his sexual potency. Of course, Bridget rightly freaks out at the sight, so Monkey Stu ends up getting knocked unconscious and resting comfortably between her legs. Hmm . . . something Freudian this way comes. No pun intended.
Back in nightmare-land, Stu finds himself in a Dickensian prison, with fake Stephen King and a bunch of murderers and other freaky inmates. Hypnos, sensing that there's a perfect opportunity for exposition, pays Stu a little visit and he explains that he and Monkeybone were in cahoots so that they could spread nightmares around the world with the help of Bridget's "nightmare juice." Dum-dum-DUM! In the real world, Bridget returns home to find a shocking scene: Dave Foley and Monkey Stu making marketing deals while Monkey Stu gives reporters a tour of his house! How disturbing! That night, Monkey Stu dreams of chasing lingerie models through a golf course until he's caught in a sand trap and rudely interrupted by Hypnos, who sets Monkey Stu right and puts him back on their mission.
To that end, Monkey Stu breaks into Bridget's lab and he steals the "nightmare juice," but not before nearly losing it to a caged orangutan . Just because, Monkey Stu makes out with the orangutan and this leads to Monkey Stu getting the "nightmare juice" back . . . at the loss of his pants. Back in bed, Bridget is mystified and alarmed by Monkey Stu's choice of wardrobe: a poncho, shoes, and underwear. I hear it's all the rage in Paris this season. Meanwhile, in nightmare-land, Stu chats a bit with his fellow nightmare-fueling cellmates and then Rose pays him a visit, maybe for a little prison sex. Or hairballs . . . which does sound vaguely dirty, after all.
In the real world, Monkey Stu inks marketing deals and nefariously he also plans on using a farting monkey doll to disseminate the "nightmare juice" to unsuspecting consumers. Hmm . . . it can't be any worse than antifreeze in Chinese toothpaste. Bridget is concerned by Monkey Stu's strange changes in behavior, especially after Monkey Stu sprays the dog with "nightmare juice." The dog, out of its unconscious mind, dreams of castration by hillbilly cats . . . yep. Strangely, it does make sense.
In nightmare-land, Rose helps to break Stu out of jail by stealing the key and then mauling the rat-guard on duty. Ah, there's nothing like a bloodthirsty, feline HOT CHICK. Meanwhile, Monkey Stu hosts a charity benefit and he has plenty of his "nightmare juice"-laced dolls on hand to contaminate the attendees! Dum-dum-DUM! In the land of Death, Stu is once again captured by Whoopi and, under the pain of torture, he confesses just why he keeps breaking into her territory: he's doing it for love. Whoopi is moved by the revelation, so much so that she releases Stu from his bounds and she gives him the duty of stopping Monkey Stu back in the real world. Oh, and then she kicks him in the butt and back into the real world . . .
. . . And, unfortunately, Stu doesn't return to his old body but instead he lands in the corpse of dead Chris Kattan, who's busy being dissected for organ donations. After dead Chris Kattan comes back to life, head doctor on duty Bob Odenkirk yells at him to lie back down and stay dead. Dead Chris Kattan, possessed by the vengeful spirit of Stu, doesn't listen, so he escapes from the hospital with Bob Odenkirk and his lackeys in tow. Dead Chris Kattan gives them the slip and goes to Stu's house where, once there, he tells friendly neighbor Harry Knowles not to call the police. Eh, it's no big deal, dead Chris Kattan; he's just going to go back inside and post *SPOILER ALERTS* about the state of Claire the Indestructible Cheerleader's hymen.
Once inside the house, dead Chris Kattan tapes himself together and he retrieves Stu's grandmother's engagement ring, which he still has to give to Bridget. Ah, there's nothing sweeter than zombie love. Dead Chris Kattan then takes a bus to the charity event . . . with the coroners still on his tail! Over at the gala, Dave Foley gets hit with a dose of the "nightmare juice" and he hallucinates that his clothes and the toilets in the bathroom are attacking him. Somehow, this leads to Dave Foley streaking through the ballroom, just because he can. In order to distract the guests from the naked Canadian hauling ass no pun intended through the establishment, Monkey Stu takes the stage for a musical number and he serenades Bridget with the sentimental strains of "Brick House." He even caps it off with a marriage proposal . . . but with the wrong ring! Dum-dum-DUM!
After Bridget objects to Monkey Stu's proposal, dead Chris Kattan arrives at the gala and, though he nearly gets arrested, he wins over Bridget by giving her the ring and revealing his true identity. Then, because he needs REVENGE and his body back, dead Chris Kattan goes after Monkey Stu but Monkey Stu devises his escape by releasing the poisoned monkeys! Of course, it's all for naught as, after leaving the ballroom in chaos, Monkey Stu runs . . . upstairs! Why? Why must they always run upstairs! What are they going to do from there . . . jump? Although, finally, going up pays off as Monkey Stu hitches a ride on a Monkeybone balloon conveniently moored to the roof. After dead Chris Kattan makes out with Bridget, he jumps after Monkey Stu and battles his rival . . . while popping out organs over the suburbs, much to the coroners' collective chagrin.
After a near-eternity of Monkey Stu and dead Chris Kattan scuffling on the balloon, a hapless cop shoots down the balloon. After Monkey Stu and dead Chris Kattan plummet to Earth, they end up back in nightmare-land and are caught by giant robot Whoopi Goldberg. Whoa . . . that's just freaky. Whoopi still kind of likes Stu, so she merges him and Monkeybone once again which was the whole reason for Stu's psychoses to begin with and then she flicks Stu back into his body. Stu returns to Bridget and they live happily ever after together . . . while a tripping Dave Foley orders me to get naked. Umm . . . no thanks, Dave.
While many have rightly compared Monkeybone to Cool World, there are significant differences, particularly in that Monkeybone is much, much weirder. Though Cool World was strange, it did have a certain sheen and gloss to it, as well as a feeling of "cool." There really is nothing cool about Monkeybone, however; it is obviously and unapologetically disconcerting with a style greatly influenced by director Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach). In addition, while the first half of the film is a bizarre study of the unconscious mind and the eternal struggle between the ego and the id, the second half of the film beginning at the point where Monkeybone possesses Stu is a near total slapstick. Then again, whenever the id invades the real world, that can only cause hilarious chaos . . . and spawn a Misunderstood Masterpiece.
Join me next week as I kick off another TV-to-film trilogy with Buster Poindexter and one very important question . . . see you then!
