Monkey Shines (film)

Monkey Shines
Monkey Shines
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	George A. Romero
Screenplay by	George A. Romero
Based on	Monkey Shines; by Michael Stewart
Produced by	Charles Evans
Starring	Jason Beghe; John Pankow; Kate McNeil; Joyce Van Patten;
Cinematography	James A. Contner
Edited by	Pasquale Buba
Music by	David Shire
Production; company	Orion Pictures
Distributed by	Orion Pictures
Release date	July 29, 1988;
Running time	113 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$7 million
Box office	$5.3 million

Monkey Shines (also known as Monkey Shines: An Experiment in Fear) is a 1988 American science fiction psychological horror film written and directed by George A. Romero and starring Jason Beghe, Kate McNeil, John Pankow, and Joyce Van Patten. Its plot follows a young athlete who becomes a paralyzed quadriplegic, and develops a bond with an intelligent service monkey named "Ella" who becomes homicidal after she is injected with an experimental serum of human brain tissue. It is based on the 1983 British novel of the same title by Michael Stewart.

Producers Peter Grunwald and Charles Evans of Orion Pictures acquired the rights to Stewart's novel in 1985, and began production two years later, with Romero assigned to direct. The film marked Romero's first major studio feature, and was his second-most expensive film at that time, with a budget of $7 million. The setting was changed from Oxford, England, where the novel was set, to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a city in which Romero had long resided and often set his films. Principal photography of Monkey Shines took place in Pittsburgh in the late summer and early fall of 1987. It had a protracted post-production and editing process, as Romero shot more film than he had on any of his previous projects, particularly due to the use of live monkeys.

Monkey Shines was released theatrically by Orion Pictures in July 1988, receiving mixed reviews and a lackluster box-office reception, grossing $5.3 million against its $7 million budget. In the intervening years, the film has been noted by critics as an offbeat entry in Romero's filmography, and has earned status as a minor cult film.^[2]

^ "Monkey Shines: An Experiment in Fear (1988)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
^ McLean, Ralph (November 9, 2018). "Cult Movie: Monkey Shines a rare miss for chiller master George A Romero". The Irish News. Archived from the original on January 28, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2020.

[tomatoes-1] "Monkey Shines: An Experiment in Fear (1988)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved January 27, 2020.

[irish-2] McLean, Ralph (November 9, 2018). "Cult Movie: Monkey Shines a rare miss for chiller master George A Romero". The Irish News. Archived from the original on January 28, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2020.

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