If you're going to make a film that owes a strong debt to both Cujo and Halloween then it's quite a good idea to have a rabid chimpanzee at the heart of it, and that's exactly what director Johannes Roberts has done. Having also co-written the screenplay with Ernest Riera, Roberts gives himself every chance to make something that feels nicely in tribute to some classic horrors without seeming to slavishly adhere to their templates.
Lucy (Johnny Sequoyah) and her friends arrive at her isolated Hawaiian home, where she soon has to introduce everyone to the family pet, Ben. Ben is a loving chimpanzee who communicates via a soundboard device. Unfortunately, Ben is bitten by a mongoose, which creates a big problem for Lucy and her friends when they end up trapped by him. Lucy's father (Troy Kotsur) has to spend some time away from home, of course, but he might end up in a race against the clock before the end credits roll.
I tend to like the films of Johannes Roberts. They can be quite silly, but are often silly in just the right way. He also tends to make very good use of whatever financing he manages to arrange. Primate is enjoyably silly, putting the fun premise in a decent location, and it often looks much better than you'd expect something so proudly schlocky to look.
The main problem lies with the cast. They're not bad, but they aren't able to really make any strong impression, aside from being part of the group due to be terrorised by a killer chimp. Sequoyah is joined onscreen by Jessica Alexander, Victoria Wyant, Gia Hunter, Benjamin Cheng, and a few others, but they're very much a group in dire straits, as opposed to individuals working through various problems while trying to stay alive. That's not the worst way this lot could be presented, by the way, and many films have done far worse, but it's the main weakness. The main characters you'll remember once it's all over will probably be the one played by Kotsur and the one played by Miguel Torres Umba (he's the physical performer who does such a great job of pretending to be a chimpanzee). Oh, there's also a memorable uncredited cameo role for Rob Delaney.
There are times when you may be distracted by elements on the screen, either the slight strangeness of the impressive work done to make Ben seem like a real character or one or two moments that go a bit too heavy on the homage (a scene with a couple of characters hiding in a closet being the main offender there), but Roberts generally knows how to keep viewers entertained, and he's delivered a creature feature that feels like a perfect choice for those wanting something simple, tense, and a bit gory, all within a runtime that's just a shade over the 90-minute mark.
I'm not sure this will stand the test of time, but I can see it being well-received by those who either find it on sale or check it out when it hits one of the many streaming services vying for your eyeballs. And I'd happily rewatch it any time.
7/10
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