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Monkeybone
20th Century Fox Film Corporation

Monkeybone reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 40 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
6.8 out of 10
based on 28 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 11 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: PG-13 for crude humor and some nudity

Starring Brendan Fraser, Bridget Fonda, Rose McGowan, Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Kattan, Dave Foley, Megan Mullally, and John Turturro

Combining live action and stop animation, this comedy revolves around a cartoonist (Fraser) and the incredible fantasy world he encounters after he slips into a coma.


GENRE(S): Comedy  
WRITTEN BY: Kaja Blackley (graphic novel Dark Town)
Sam Hamm
 
DIRECTED BY: Henry Selick  
RELEASE DATE: DVD: July 10, 2001 
Video: July 10, 2001 
Theatrical: February 23, 2001 
RUNNING TIME: 90 minutes, Color 
ORIGIN: USA 

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

90
Salon.com Charles Taylor
A giddy madcap classic, one of the wildest and funniest American comedies in years.
Read Full Review
83
Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum
There's unwieldy mess -- but there's also unruly brilliance to this dark and funny story about the havoc that ensues when a man's uncensored Freudian id is allowed the run of the place.
Read Full Review
80
Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas
Grand fantasy, in which Brendan Fraser and stylish design and energetic special effects play off one another for maximum fun.
Read Full Review
70
The New York Times Dana Stevens
The movie is booby-trapped with so many loud gags that some of its sneakier humor is nearly lost in the din.
Read Full Review
63
USA Today Susan Wloszczyna
Wildly uneven collage of effects and live action is no Disney-bland vision of dreams gone bonkers. There's enough Freudian material to reupholster a thousand therapy couches.
Read Full Review
60
Film.com Robert Horton
Looks like a very cheerful and imaginative accident.
Read Full Review
60
TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
A fairly serious psychodrama rendered in cartoon images.
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60
Washington Post Michael O'Sullivan
Although Monkeybone will undoubtedly make you laugh at its slapstick highjinks, the irony is that for a movie that's ultimately about soul, that's the one commodity that's in precious short supply up on the screen.
Read Full Review
58
Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy
It's alternately mind-boggling and patience-testing, mixing astounding sequences of over-the-top invention with scenes of inept acting and indifferent filmmaking.
Read Full Review
58
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker
Selick proves a clumsy director of live-action scenes and never overcomes the muddled, half-baked script or the scatological gags.
Read Full Review
50
New York Post Lou Lumenick
An occasionally delightful mess of a movie.
50
Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez
A shapeless, chaotic, overly frantic comedy that manages to make almost no sense, even if you're paying close attention.
Read Full Review
50
San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle
Too grotesque for children and just too silly for their parents.
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50
LA Weekly Hazel-Dawn Dumpert
Like so many movies that depend on effects for effect, plot comes in a poor second to spectacle. That leaves the Fraser, funny and sexy as hell, left with little chance to prove it.
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42
Mr. Showbiz Cody Clark
A movie interesting enough in its conception to appeal to adults winds up being best suited to preadolescent sensibilities.
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40
Chicago Reader Lisa Alspector
The scenes set on earth--messy, predictable satire about the commercial exploitation of fevered genius. The unconscious/underworld scenes may be boring because neosurrealism is a cliche.
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38
Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea
Feels like it's been homogenized and Hollywoodized to death.
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38
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
The movie never takes off; it's a bright idea the filmmakers were unable to breathe life into.
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38
Chicago Tribune Mark Caro
Isn't much more creative than your average gross-out comedy.
30
Washington Post Rita Kempley
The result is a script so needlessly complicated that it defies comprehension.
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30
Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov
Selick is widely and rightly regarded as a master of surreal, dark humor, and wildly inventive animation technique, and Monkeybone is the first tarnish on his otherwise spotless reputation.
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30
Variety Dennis Harvey
It's equal parts wacky, sappy and sniggery.
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30
Dallas Observer Robert Wilonsky
Like a half-remembered dream, the movie's often so overwhelming that even its dull, dead moments (of which there are many, unfortunately) leave you wondering what you're missing and what you've just forgotten.
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25
New York Daily News Jack Mathews
A shell of a romantic fantasy festooned with characters inspired by and resembling those in the bar scene in "Star Wars," the waiting room in "Beetlejuice" and the circus in "A Bug's Life."
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25
Baltimore Sun Athima Chansanchai
A raunchy, remorseless "Curious George."
25
Boston Globe Jay Carr
For all its antic grasping it lies flatter on the screen than its graphic novel source lies on the page.
10
Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
Adds up to one numbingly unfunny comedy.
10
Village Voice Michael Atkinson
A self-adrenalizing, self-destructing pop-culture whirligig.
Read Full Review

What Our Users Said

Vote Now!The average user rating for this movie is 6.8 (out of 10) based on 11 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Toml L. gave it a 0:
I could absolutely not follow such a sketchy and jumpy script. This could have been a good dark comedy, but once again director Henry Selick tries too hard with his animation and warped mind.

Amy K. gave it a 10:
This movie was so funny! Brendon is so good looking! MonkeyBone is adorable! I just wish i could find MonkeyBone icons for AIM.

Chrissy B. gave it a 10:
I don't care what anyone else says.. I liked this movie! I loved the crazy characters- costume designs were kool! My kinda movie ;)

[Anonymous] gave it a 2:
This movie had a story for 4 year olds which made it boring for people older, but the jokes were for teenages which made it boring for everyone else. This is the worst movie I've seen in a long time.

BJ H. gave it a 10:
Gloriously funny, superb, darkly entertaining, Rodger Rabbit meets adult video action, Beetlejuice on viagra!

Bexley gave it an 8:
Loved the dark animation and Fraser's performance. The storyline was lacking in places and some characters were just too bizarre. But the sheer inventiveness and polished appearance saves the day.

Desiree B. gave it a 9:
This movie is amazing stop-action animation. It also has wonderful cameos from people like Steven King, and it is mad funny. The love story part makes it a nine instead of a ten, but the DVD makes up for it with extra scenes and features.

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