Woodyanders Review of Monkey Trouble

Monkey Trouble (1994)

Harvey Keitel is the scariest villain ever in a 90's kiddie flick!

[8/10 · 10 August 2008]

The plot for this family feature is pretty negligible (an eminently insufferable should-be lovable'n'huggable little girl adopts a cuddly capuchin who's been trained to steal things as a pet and hides the little bugger from her disapproving parents), but fortunately this film does have one tremendous ace up its otherwise empty sleeve: the chimp's evil, sinister, glowering gypsy organ-grinder owner is played by none other than a hilariously miscast Harvey Keitel! Sporting a mouth full of gleaming gold teeth, long, greasy, unwashed hair, an awful wardrobe of blindingly gaudy gypsy rags, gold chains hanging around his chest, a feeble attempt at a dense European accent that's betrayed by Harve's unmistakable Brooklyn rumble, and the same crazed'n'creepy aura that he brought to his sleazy street corner pimp role in "Taxi Driver," the ever-manic Keitel acts with a savage intensity and gritty authenticity which seems alarmingly out of place in an alleged kiddie pic. One simply hasn't lived until witnessing the hair-raising moment in which Harvey blames the monkey for the recent loss of his latest girlfriend: "She even took my freakin' food!," Keitel roars at the poor, cowering creature. "She hated you and your stinkin' mess!" Alas, at no point in the film does Harvey curse out the monkey at the top of his lungs while furiously masturbating. Moreover, this flick's cast and crew should send the mind of any devout trash cinema aficionado reeling: Ridley Scott (!) was the executive producer, cinematographer Luciano Tovoli also shot Dario Argento's landmark giallo "Tenebre," "Bad Georgia Road" director John Broderick co-produced, and the cast includes such "what the hell are they doing here?" notables as Mimi Rogers, Christopher McDonald, and dependably gruff Abel Ferrara movie mainstay Victor Argo in one of his customary mob capo parts. And one last remark before I conclude this particular comment: I bet dollars-to-donuts that there's a whole generation of hopelessly messed-up six year old tykes who are currently experiencing marrow-freezing nightmares because of Harvey Keitel's frightening, fire-breathing, full-throttle histrionics in this film.