“Primate” (2026) exists in a world where raising a chimpanzee in a house with kids seems like a good idea, and “Nope” (2022) does not exist. One Hawaiian family of three host friends over for light revelry at the worst possible time: when Ben (Miguel Torres Umba as the body and Ben Pronsky as the voice) gets rabies and starts attacking people. No need to fear the January movie release. This gruesome, mean-spirited horror film has a lot of bite.
Ever since “Godzilla” (2014), creature features have been plagued with the problem of ruining the fun if you feel bad for the creature. Do not spoil the fun. Chimpanzees are innately tragic figures. Human beings are not supposed to keep them as pets, which isolates them from socializing fully with their species and leads to tragedy when the chimpanzee inevitably chimpanzees. Chimpanzees are stronger than human beings, have huge incisors, are dexterous and naturally engage in war when living in the wild. Well, normally I do not like in media res, beginning in the middle of the action, but here it was the right move even if it gets a little repetitive later. Side note: was that Rob Delaney have a cameo as the veterinarian Lambert? If director and cowriter Johannes Roberts and cowriter Ernest Riera introduced the adorable Ben who wears sweaters, plays with his human sisters, Lucy (Johnny Sequoyah) and the younger Erin (Gia Hunter), and cuddles teddy bears, it would have been too heartbreaking.
When Ben gets rabies, it is as if he is waking up to the infantilization and decided to start the “Planet of the Apes” franchise. Fun fact: mongeese are known for having rabies. Roberts and Riera could have delved into the motivation for Ben’s rage more, but it still would have run the risk of becoming sad. Instead, it is as if he got an extra dose of clarity and intelligence and relishes finally letting loose. He serves multiple functions. Ben is the family id, each individual member’s rage at the other for not prioritizing the family. He has an iPad like device that lets him say words through a machine, which sounds more sinister as he becomes more menacing. At one point, he repeatedly presses the key for dad. He becomes an onscreen catalyst for the members to do better and finally sacrifice themselves instead of letting him do all the heavy lifting without any privileges. Without being rapey or sexual from Ben’s perspective, a couple of the attacks share visual characteristics with sexcapades such as a car shaking from the outside or pulling someone’s legs so they lay flat in bed so he can loom above them. He seems especially determined to eliminate anyone who is not family.
If “Primate” gets shakey, it is because the writers seem a bit torn over who should be the protagonist, Lucy or Hannah (Jess Alexander), who is Lucy’s biggest competition in her friendship with Kate (Victoria Wyant) and her unarticulated crush on Nick (Benjamin Cheng), which dad and workaholic author, Adam (Oscar winner Troy Kotsur), is obviously rooting for. Or these clever writers are making the audience deliberately prefer Hannah to raise the stakes. It is the definition of one-sided beef. Hannah is insensitive and a bit self-involved, but she clocks the hate directed at her and does not wilt. Because she is the only one in the group who does not consider Ben to be a childhood friend as a late addition to the group, she is the only one who acts appropriately when the proverbial crap hits the fan though she could be Ben’s villain origin story because she is very callous when they are introduced, and he is right there and can hear how she refers to him as an object.
The young actors are all functional and deliberately directed to adhere to teen stereotypes, but Alexander is the scene stealer. Hannah is the most interesting young character in the group while Lucy seems to want things to work out and stay stable without doing anything that inconveniences her. She takes after her father, but unlike Lucy, Adam stands out, seems well intentioned and is an absolute delight. Kotsur is deaf, and Roberts uses this detail to elevate a lot of elements in “Primate.” Roberts contrasts what everyone else hears then depicts how Adam hears his surroundings. It leads to humor in the screen casting of text exchanges, and it increases the tension because he cannot hear the chaos unfolding thus becomes potentially more vulnerable to attacks. There is a moment when Roberts depicts how Ben hears the world, and if that point was built upon, it would have been a stronger movie. Put Kotsur in more films! He is a great actor, and his deafness made the movie better. He should be beating filmmakers away with a stick.
With a blessed one hour twenty-nine-minute run time, “Primate” could have still been tighter if it was not so initially cheap with whittling down the numbers. Either AI or the Location Management problem did a great job setting up the additional obstacles to surviving a chimp attack as if any were needed. Though chimps do not have to have rabies to get violent, the natural aversion to water was a clever way to force people to hide out in the pool and add other dangers. One side of the pool has a great view, which unfortunately has a perilous drop since it is perched on a cliff. There are plenty of places for Ben to jump and get close to the pool without taking a dip. There were times when it looked fake in long shots, but other times, the natural beauty of Hawaii shone through thanks to cinematographer Stephen Murphy, who makes the movie look better than it ever had to. (It was shot on sound stages in London. Shhhhh.) Fun fact: chimpanzees can swim. I’ll sign a waiver.
The jump scares scare instead of feeling like the lowest form of horror. John Carpenter seemed to inspire composer Adrian Johnston. There are plenty of visual horror franchise homages: “Alien,” “Jurassic Park” and “Halloween.” Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode would kill for these closets. Ben rips parts from people, bashes them with fists and objects, bites and tears, and Roberts is not afraid to show a lot of it and linger. It is a merciless film so when people start surviving, it is more because there needs to be a resolution otherwise there would be a sequel with Ben moving on to find more people to kill because he eliminated everyone within reach. Imagine if he could drive…it is possible. Who would I be in “Primate?” No one. You have a pet chimp. I’m outta there. I’ll stay at a hotel.
Good thing that Hawaii has good healthcare. In real life, Hawaii does not allow people to own chimpanzees. Coincidence? “Primate” was my first screening of 2026 and what a wonderful way to start off the year. It is nice to see a good-looking movie that knows who it is and is not ashamed of it. It is an entertaining ride that occasionally drags its feet and underwrites the characters, but more than makes up for it with the brutality and mercilessness. It also knows how to stick the landing. No plugs for a sequel. Let’s hope that it is an auspicious forecast for horror.
