Hollywood_Yoda
In this latest outing by Disneynature, we meet Maya, a monkey who is an outcast to her own troop. Through pure determination and perseverance however, she survives and thrives. After she finds a mate, who is later runoff by the other monkeys; and becomes a mother to Kip, she continues her fight, even against the greatest odds. Even after being forcibly moved by a neighboring troop to a new home, and having to fight for survival and even traveling into a human village.It is while Maya and the other monkeys are in the human village that they get into a lot of mischief. Very entertaining and fun movie for the whole family.My only fault with the film is that the voice of Tina Fey can make you want to fall asleep.
Roland E. Zwick
"Monkey Kingdom" is a wildlife documentary done in the trademarked Disney style - that is, to say, with lots of family-friendly positiveness and unyielding good cheer. The movie takes us deep into the jungles of Sri Lanka, where a hierarchical society of toque macaque monkeys make their home in the shadow of a long-abandoned ancient city. The main focus is on one female monkey "named" Maya, a low-born member of the community who is consigned to a lifetime of serving those born into the higher strata (the caste system here makes India look like a model of egalitarianism and social mobility in comparison). "Monkey Kingdom" is obviously aimed at a younger audience, which explains, but doesn't quite excuse, its tendency to talk down to its audience, speaking of the animals' thoughts and feelings in the most blatantly anthropomorphic of terms. It's probably not helped by the jejune Mark Linfield narration (spoken by Tina Fey), which can't resist interjecting corny asides at every opportunity. And a lot of it sure feels staged, especially a trip to a local city and a carefully choreographed raid on a birthday party (how DO they get their cameras in all those different places? Stick around for the closing credits to get an inkling of how it's done).On the plus side, the high-definition photography is drop-dead gorgeous, and the glimpses the movie provides into monkey sociology - not too far removed from human sociology, I must confess - is often fascinating to observe. Though, I must admit, I frequently found myself wishing the cameras would turn away from the monkeys to explore the nearby ruins - and the history behind them - instead.
Python Hyena
Monkey Kingdom (2015): Dir: Mark Linfield, Alastair Fothergill / Narrator: Tina Fey: Another fascinating Disney Nature documentary. This one is set within the jungles of Sri Lanka that homes a clan of macaque monkeys. Narrator Tina Fey points out the status lifestyle of these creatures sighting that the leading alpha male eats highest in the trees with the choicest food. From there it descends in rank, which unfortunately places Maya on the ground under the watchful scowls of the "sisters." Eventually she is courted by Kumar, a visiting macaque that is quickly banished for his curiosity but not before getting Maya pregnant. Her son Kip is born but it is a struggle to provide food at the lowest rank. This results in an exciting, amusing and adventurous film where the macaques are faced with all sorts of issues. They are stalked by a leopard early on, which they escape although they are not so lucky with a monitor lizard during a river sequence. They are attacked by a rival group that forces them to risk entering a nearby city. They approach this with caution as they steal food from angry humans that view them as pests. When the city becomes too overwhelming they decide to return to the jungle and fight to reclaim their rightful home. Beautifully filmed with a variety of wildlife throughout, and a well told informative narrative that gives insight to the struggles these creatures face daily. It is another triumph from the studio that brought us such treasures as Bears, Chimpanzee and African Cats. This is equally fine family viewing or for animal lovers curious to see the chaotic lifestyles going on outside our society. Score: 10 / 10
CleveMan66
Life can be tough if you weren't born to privilege. You know and understand your place in society, but wish it were higher. You try in vain to be accepted by your betters. You see no way to improve your lot in life and all you can do is watch others enjoy the fruits of their vaunted positions, and serve them. Sufficient food and shelter are hard to come by, but you make the best of the situation. You're disregarded and sometimes outright disrespected. You might not even be free to enjoy the company and comfort of the life partner of your choice. If you become a single parent, you may find yourself even more alone than when you just had yourself to be concerned with. And this whole time, you also have to worry about those outside your society taking your food, your home, your family, even your life, knowing that your only defense is those above you who treat you with such disdain. Yes, it can be really tough being a monkey in the jungles of Sri Lanka."Monkey Kingdom" (G, 1:20) is the eighth feature film from Disneynature and tells the story of Maya, a female toque macaque (pronounced "muh-KAK") who finds herself in the exact situation described above. She was born at the bottom of her group's social ladder. She has to watch her fellows in the tree branches above her eat fruits and flowers, while she is forced to scavenge what she can, including the scraps which fall to the jungle floor. She watches the other monkeys play in the tower of boulders called "Castle Rock", knowing that trying to interact with them would lead to an attack by her own kind. When it rains and the higher-born use Castle Rock for shelter, Maya and the other societal cellar dwellers are literally left out in the cold. When a male macaque who has struck out on his own shows an interest in Maya, he is chased off by the others. Maya is left alone and pregnant, with no choice but to fend for herself and her little boy, Kip.This being the jungle, there's even more for Maya and her fellow macaques to worry about besides the social order in their kingdom. First off, they have their natural predators to contend with. Steering clear of leopards and seven foot long monitor lizards will always be a priority, as will the search for food. Different seasons yield different edibles in varying amounts. Sometimes the monkeys have to get creative in their search for food, and sometimes (equally creatively), they just steal it from a nearby village. I suppose regular human people could be dangerous to encounter, but we see none of that here. In fact, we see the monkeys interact very amusingly with a variety of animals that are neither predator nor prey, to include an annoyed mongoose, some cute bear cubs and even an easy-going dog. Then again, there's also the danger of losing out on more than some nuts and berries. Castle Rock is prime jungle real estate and could be seen as very tempting by, say, a rival gang of macaques.I had no idea that monkeys had such a strict social order. And that's not all that surprised me. I don't want to spoil anything by describing some of the other things I saw monkeys do in this movie, because, unless you're a monkologist (yeah, I just made that up), you're likely to be surprised as well. But there's a lot more to this movie than simply an educational journey through the wilds of an island nation in the Indian Ocean. The movie features magnificent cinematography and editing, along with Tina Fey perfectly narrating a script that is accessible, interesting, clever and fun. Technically, this is a documentary, but it feels much more like a well-planned story, only you can't plan this stuff. There's real drama here, situations to which most people can relate and even a touch of a Disney princess story."Monkey Kingdom" is definitely not your grandparents' nature program. This movie is beautiful, thrilling, fun and educational in a way that you'll thoroughly enjoy. I had the pleasure of seeing this movie with three generations of a family with whom I am very close. The youngest member is three years old and was experiencing her very first movie in a theater. This child, who is normally very… energetic (choosing my words carefully because my friends will be reading this review), was as happy and calm as I've ever seen her (awake) and, for much of the movie, she was rapt, as was her mother and grandmother, and me. Whether you're 3, 23, 43 or 93, I can hardly imagine anyone of any age not enjoying this wonderful movie. "A"
