The Monkey King delivers an action packed adventure, coated in Chinese mythology, that families can enjoy together.
Looking for a movie that the whole family can enjoy? Netflix’s The Monkey King arrives on August 18th, and it is a fast paced action adventure comedy that is sure to impress many.
Note: This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. The Monkey King would not exist without the labor of the writers and actors in both unions.
This movie follows the monkey king, who is a little bit self centered, but has a good heart, on his journey alongside a magical fighting stick to defeat one hundred demons and earn immortality.
What Works With The Monkey King
Probably the best thing about The Monkey King is the voice cast. They all breath life into their characters in a way that will have audiences caring about them. Most important is the comedic timing, which is something Jimmy O. Yang, who voices the monkey king, and Bowen Yang, who voices the dragon king, have down pat.
The two of them are great together, often delivering the lines that will have viewers chuckling with precision. There are many other wonderful actors and comedians that are a part of this film, but these two are the standouts throughout the entire movie, and especially in the third act.
The Monkey King has stunning animation, and even switches up the style now and then. The colors are bright and vibrant, which sucks viewers in from the start. It remains high quality and consistent throughout the entire movie.
At times this movie feels like an underdog story, although the monkey king is very full of himself. He gets more and more confident, to the point where he starts to push away those around him. This works as a good way to teach children to keep their egos in check in order to succeed in life.
Many family focused movies however around the ninety minute mark, which is exactly what The Monkey King does. The story itself is very fast paced, causing the film to fly by.
What Doesn’t Work With The Monkey King
One of the biggest positives of the film, also becomes one of its biggest negatives. The Monkey King is very fast paced, which keeps its runtime locked in at ninety minutes, perfect for a family movie.
However, because of this, there are times where it seems to fly by far too fast. It never really takes its time to breath or rest, which isn’t bad during the action scenes but is harmful during the emotional bits. They never get their time to soak in, which takes away from a lot of the heart that the movie is trying to deliver — especially towards the end of the third act.
Another small issue with The Monkey King is that, while it is certainly made for families to enjoy together, it never really dives fully into the Chinese mythology. All of that ends up being more surface level, which was perhaps done to keep little ones interested, but takes away from the experience for older viewers.
Overall Thoughts
The Monkey King is a fast paced adventure that takes viewers on a journey through Chinese mythology and the well-known story of the monkey king. The voice cast was well chosen, as they offer great comedic timing, as well as some heart.
While the younger audience will certainly be entertained by the vivid colors, what feels like unlimited action, and the fast moving plot, older teens and adults might start to get lost in all of it. Still, The Monkey King is an enjoyable enough action adventure film, geared towards families. So check it out when it hits Netflix on August 18th.
Rating: 3 out of 5
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About The Monkey King
The Monkey King is an action-packed family comedy that follows a charismatic Monkey and his magical fighting Stick on an epic quest for victory over 100 demons, an eccentric Dragon King, and Monkey’s greatest foe of all–his own ego!
Along the way, a young village girl challenges his self-centered attitude and shows him that even the smallest pebble can have a big effect on the world.
The Monkey King comes to Netflix on August 18th.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. On Camera personality and TV / Film Critic with 10+ years of experience in video editing, writing, editing, moderating, and hosting.