Monkey Kingdom

There was a day when documentary feature films were considered boring, uninteresting and sort of like watching the news that one could do at home...free. But filmmakers have, through the years,  strived to create a feel in which one could learn as well as be entertained when viewing their documentaries. Believe me, the movie going audience did not instantly warm up to them at first, but as soon as enough people saw the documentaries through time, the popularity started to grow. Now it has gotten to the point where documentaries are hot! This is why we have a plethora of them today, such as Disneynature creating practically a documentary a year since 2007 starting with "Earth" '07, then going to "Oceans" '09, "African Cats" '11, "Chimpanzee" '12, "Bears" '14, and now releasing on Earth Day weekend, as with its predecessors, "Monkey Kingdom".

This documentary is set among ancient ruins in the storied jungles of South Asia where the monkey kingdom has taken over and these animals actually have a competitive social hierarchy which is crucial to their survival. One of the monkeys, Maya is in a place where her world is forever changed when she welcomes her son, Kip into her complicated family. Like all families, Maya's has more than its share of colorful personalities--and she's determined to give her son a leg up on the social ladder. When their longtime home at Castle Rock is taken over by powerful neighboring monkeys, Maya's whole family is forced to relocate, where she uses her street smarts and ingenuity to lead them to untapped resources amidst strange new creatures and unsettling surroundings. Ultimately, they will all have to work together to reclaim Castle Rock, where Maya can hopefully realize her dreams for her son's future.

This was incredibly well directed by Mark Linfield ("Earth" (Documentary) '07, "Chimpanzee"
(Documentary) '12) and Alistair Fothergill ("Deep Blue" '03, "Earth" '07, "African Cats" '11, "Chimpanzee" '12, "Bears" '14--all documentaries). These guys obviously know their genre, and this film simply furthers that proof of their expertise. This was informational yet entertaining, especially choosing Tina Fey as narrator--what a stroke of genius! How they achieved so many of the shots they did was amazing, which takes me to the true stars of this film...the cinematographers, Martyn Colbeck and Gavin Thurston. Their ability to achieve the different shots of the animals was awesome and the photography was just stunning. This coupled with Andy Netley's incredible editing made this film soar as with all the Disneynature films. There was even a few minute summary before the film letting us know about the progress made with each film to help save the planet and the different animals in it, and, like the other films, if one sees the film within the first week of release, a certain percentage of the gross tickets will go to the preservation of these wonderful monkeys in South Asia, so go see this film.

This is a great film--informational, entertaining, and made with the idea of helping the planet. What a great cause. I never hawk a film in regard of its financial gain, but when the proceeds go to such a great cause as this, I couldn't resist mentioning this aspect.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                  Rated: G                                  81mins.