Primate Movie Review | Anupama Chopra | THR India

Anupama Chopra reviews Primate, the new horror film from British director Johannes Roberts that delivers a deliciously simple premise: a loving family's pet chimpanzee contracts rabies and turns into a ferocious killer, trapping alluring teenagers in a beautiful cliffside house in Hawaii. Anupama praises the masterstroke of setting much of the action around the swimming pool, since the chimp Ben can't swim and the rabies makes him hydrophobic, turning the water into the only safe haven. She highlights the wondrous work of movement specialist Miguel Torres Umba, whose mix of makeup, special effects, and practical effects makes Ben feel horrifically real rather than an alienating CGI creature.

At a crisp 89 minutes, Anupama notes that Johannes keeps audiences properly terrorized with brutal blood-letting—faces ripped off, chests and heads smashed in—building tension with ruthless efficiency. The cast includes Oscar winner Troy Kotsur as the deaf father Adam, adding another layer to the horror. Anupama confesses she only got through some scenes by closing her eyes, and advises viewers not to look for nuance or subtext. Primate hurtles along like a boulder delivering elemental pleasures, and sometimes that's all you need at the movies.