Chimps, the Infected, Serial Killers and Supernatural Power Struggles

The new year has unexpectedly graced us with a plethora of interesting and entertaining horror films this month in theaters or on streaming sites. In the interest of not just focusing on one and ignoring the others, here are some capsule reviews.

Primate – I guess the title Primate sounded more marketable than Killer Chimp, but in its soul this flick is more the latter than the former. Which is a good thing. The film lets you know this immediately; within the first two minutes a gruesome act of violence happens, just to let people who’ve wandered into the wrong theater by mistake realize the heinous depth of their error. 

Here’s the plot: A famous author and his two daughters live with a chimp named Ben. Poor Ben gets bitten by a mongoose and gets rabies, after which he is in no way gentle. He tries to kill everyone in sight, and they in their turns try not to be killed. Mostly, they fail. 

Things you will learn in this movie: Apparently there is no rabies in Hawaii, where this story is set. Except of course for the creature that bit Ben. Also, chimpanzees have dense muscle fiber, which means when placed in deep water, they don’t float but instead sink like a hairy, flailing stone (not a spoiler, just a fact).

Director Johannes Roberts (who co-wrote the screenplay with Ernest Riera) isn’t going for the Cujo sympathy route here (Cujo was a good boy before he got bit by a bat): Ben is a monster from the first moment you see him. This flick is just meant to scare you and gross you out, and it succeeds on both counts. The violence is brutal and gnarly, which should satisfy its target audience.

Primate is down-and-dirty lowbrow fun for the less evolved, which means that I enjoyed this bloody monkey business.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – I preferred this second installment of the 28 Years Later trilogy to the first one, although fans of the series’ traditional violent action may find this film a bit too quiet for their tastes. Whereas all of the previous movies focused primarily on trying to survive the predation from those infected by the “rage virus,” The Bone Temple is more of a character study set in that world.

There are two main plot threads, which eventually dovetail into one. The first follows young Spike from the initial film, who has been dragooned into a murderous cult run by a psychopath named Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal (Jack O’Connell). The group, all referred to as “Jimmy,” rove about the countryside, killing hapless victims at their lord’s sadistic command. The second story involves Dr. Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) and his attempts to find a cure for the rage virus.

O’Connell gives a charismatic performance as the deranged Jimmy, eternally punishing the world, and Fiennes is quietly powerful as Kelson, appreciating what is decent in life and trying to restore it. It should also be pointed out that in one scene Fiennes puts on a bravura demonic performance to the backing of Iron Maiden, which is not something I ever thought I’d be gifted with. 

Director Nia DaCosta does an impressive job with the material, and she’s equally good with horrific action and dramatic character work. After three previous movies in the series, The Bone Temple introduces something new to the story – a spark of hope.

Strange Harvest – This is the oldest film in this piece, arriving on streaming several months ago, but it’s obscure enough that I wanted to bring it to people’s attention. It’s an unusually detailed, creative and disturbing movie about a hunt for a serial killer done in a “mockumentary” format that is notably ambitious for its indie budget. It also goes somewhere a bit surprising, which is a bonus.

A killer who refers to himself as “Mr. Shiny” murders three people in the early ‘90s, then essentially disappears for twenty years. In 2010, he begins killing again in earnest, leaving notes and odd symbols for the authorities to puzzle over. Two detectives have been investigating his case for decades, agonizingly piecing together clues as the ephemeral killer continues to evade them.

Strange Harvest is a rare bird, a film written, directed, produced and edited by one person – Stuart Ortiz. That would be an impressive enough achievement, but the fact that the movie is actually good makes it remarkable. If you like some horror in your slow-burn crime procedural, give this one a watch.

Man Finds Tape – I’d heard positive buzz about this film and knowing it was produced by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (The Endless, Spring), who are some of my favorite filmmakers, sealed the deal. It debuted on streaming platforms a bit over a month ago, and its original premise, skillful execution and terrific performances deserve a large audience. 

Lucas (William Magnuson) has made a name for himself online for videos about supernatural or mysterious things he explores, but his main claim to fame is finding a tape with his name on it that shows a stranger walking into his bedroom while he’s asleep. His older sister, Lynn (Kelsey Pribilski), thinks he’s an irresponsible loon, but when he contacts her in a panic to come to help him, she grudgingly obliges. He shows her a bizarre phenomenon in which townspeople are all simultaneously going unconscious, and before long she’s caught up in a weird mystery involving a struggle for control of the entire populace.

I’ve left a lot of detail out of that synopsis, because there is so much arcane, delicious craziness happening in this movie that I don’t want to spoil it. Magnuson is convincing as a guy who thinks he’s smarter than he is, and Pribilski is very good as the sister who actually has to deal with everything. John Gholson and Brian Villalobos are both terrific in vivid supporting roles. 

Writer/directors Paul Gandersman and Peter S. Hall deliver the goods both visually and with their clever script, continuing to up the ante as the film progresses. My only complaint was that it was too short at 84 minutes, and I wish it had more time to fully explore its original world. Also unexpected – Kristen Bell is a co-producer.