Search - Monkey Shines on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Violence, Nudity, Adult Situations, Strong Sexual Content, Not For Children, Adult Language, Profanity Movie Release: 1988 DVD Release: 09/28/1999 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV,Pan and Scan Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: English, French SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 54 mins Studio: MGM Members Wishing: 3 Genres: Horror, Natural Horror

A quadriplegic former athlete finds his darkest urges being acted out by an animal familiar in this psychological horror film. When Allan Mann (Jason Beghe) loses the use of his legs and arms in an accident, he becomes bitter -- no surprise given that his girlfriend dumps him for his surgeon, his new nurse (Christine Forrest) is a shrew, and his smothering mother (Joyce Van Patten) keeps threatening to move in and take care of him. Enter Kate McNeil (Melanie Parker), a scientist who is working to provide handicapped people with highly trained animal helpers. Soon Allan is bonding with Ella, an adorable Capuchin monkey, who, unbeknownst to him, has been injected with human brain tissue by drug-addicted scientist Geoffrey Fisher (John Pankow). At first Allan loves little Ella, but the monkey seems to grow jealous as Allan slowly develops a romance with the beautiful Kate. Meanwhile, Allan begins having strange dreams in which he experiences the world from a monkey's-eye point of view. These visions culminate in a fiery nightmare -- the same night Allan's ex-girlfriend and her new lover die in a house fire. Realizing the growing link between his own inner demons and the violence occurring around him, Allan tries to sever the connection with Ella. But the limitations of even his high-tech wheelchair give the psychic primate the upper hand. Written and directed by horror veteran George Romero, Monkey Shines re-teams the filmmaker with his frequent collaborator, Christine Forrest. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

Jason Beghe - Allan Mann
John Pankow - Geoffrey Fisher
Kate McNeil - Melanie Parker
Joyce Van Patten - Dorothy Mann
Christine Forrest - Maryanne Hodges

George A. Romero's horror film Monkey Shines comes to DVD with a pair of transfers. The widescreen anamorphic transfer preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and is preferable to the standard full-frame image. English and French soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Surround. Subtitles are accessible in both of those languages as well. Supplemental materials include the original theatrical trailer, and a booklet on the making of the film. This is a fine release from MGM/UA. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide