Boy Movies #65

Every man must make his own John Wick or he will die

You’re reading Boy Movies, a newsletter. Today I walked into my neighborhood coffee shop while I was feeling absolutely IN. SANE. and “One More Try” by George Michael was playing. I got my little iced Americano and sat there sipping it until the song ended. It was a sincere moment of peace this afternoon. I wish you one as well.

Sticker alert

If this is your 65th issue, you know what I’m about to say. If it’s your first issue, well, hi! But also, buy Boy Movies stickers. I promise to write you a cute little note to go with them!

Question alert

A reader recently brought to me a proposal that intrigued me greatly. If I were to host a live chat every week during the upcoming season of Interview with the Vampire, is that something that would interest anyone else? Would anyone participate? Yeah, I know, this is Boy MOVIES not Boy TV Shows, but let’s have some fun. I am unsure how I would make this happen, considering nobody watches anything live anymore, though I have seen other newsletters do it so I’m sure I could figure it out. Let me know! This is my attempt at fostering a Boy Movies community so none of you ever unsubscribe <3

Dev Patel girl actor

Like, let’s get that out of the way. Obviously. I saw Monkey Man last night, which is such a boy movie it’s almost laughable. Dev Patel’s directorial debut is a bloody, bloody action movie, but as was the case when I saw The Green Knight, I can barely tell you a thing about it because every time I see Dev Patel on screen my body’s immediate defense response is to shut down. I’m kidding (not about The Green Knight — I didn’t process a word of that movie but oh do I remember Dev’s face), though he does make me feel like a Victorian man getting a glimpse of ankle. That is simply the hottest person we as a species have ever produced.

Monkey Man follows Just Some Guy, played by Dev Patel, who has a lot of childhood trauma and is barely scraping by financially. (Relatable!) He gets cash by acting as a masked punching bag for guys in an underground fighting ring, entertaining the masses with his willingness to take a beating. Nobody likes this guy, which doesn’t make any sense because he is delicately beautiful and has amazing hair, but this is a boy movie and those things always tend to go unacknowledged in these spaces. After a series of complications, he’s pushed to act on his aforementioned childhood trauma and vows to get revenge on the evil rich guy who, spoiler, did in fact kill his mother. Along the way, he joins an ass-kicking transgender commune for some reason (to be clear, I loved it) which inspires him to start fighting on behalf of those who have been mistreated by society, too. There’s also a sort of random political plot — listen, not everything works. But there is fighting. So very much fighting, a lot of it mouth-based. And yes, as I said, blood. Monkey Man has about as much blood (copious) as it does ideas (a zillion).

Since the Monkey Man trailer dropped, it has faced relentless comparisons to the New Jersey-based film series John Wick, which: duh. Its neon lighting, vengeful and borderline mute lead, and the random presence of a dog invite those parallels in. Unfortunately, John Wick is literally referenced in the film, which, as Daniela pointed out as we left the theater, means that we’ll never get an Alien vs. Predator-style crossover. (That said, if the powers that be ever decide to handwave this detail, I will be there on opening night, no questions asked.) One of the things about the John Wick movies that has always struck me is that the character of John Wick is basically impenetrable. He gets the shit kicked out of him sometimes, but the man made four movies out of mowing down entire rooms full of faceless goons. The winks Monkey Man throws to this are fun: When Dev’s nameless protagonist tries to escape a bad situation by throwing himself out of a window, he instead bounces off the glass. The film’s greatest strength is how it highlights Dev’s long, wiry limbs, which don’t look like the hideously muscled limbs of other actors of this caliber. Monkey Man is the “not like other girls” of bisexually lit action thrillers.

More than John Wick, though, Monkey Man reminded me of Drive, another action film that sticks its girl-coded star (Ryan Gosling) under a boy movie lens. I recently heard David Krumholtz on the Marc Maron podcast (I’m secretly 57 years old, you see) astutely calling out how the Coen brothers love a male protagonist with a dangerous pair of sad eyes. (Marc was shocked by this; I said “YES, EXACTLY” out loud to no one.) This is Dev’s whole thing, and part of what makes him such a great example of a girl actor. Him being a girl actor isn’t a value judgment, but it’s also not entirely his fault; he’s spoken about how he simply was not getting offered roles like this (boy roles) so he had to go and create one for himself. With Monkey Man, he wanted to do something different, and I think it’s fair to say he pulled that off. How many Western action films are based on Hindu tales, after all? But even he’s not above falling prey to the tropes of the genre: car chases, tragic dead mommy origin story, sad sexy woman whose only job is to stand around looking sad and sexy. All the trappings are there. It’s not a bad thing — the film’s positive reception proves that it’s a formula that reliably works. I certainly had a great time, though I was pretty distracted, as I already disclosed.

It’s just that I am constantly wondering about this path that male actors take in their effort to “graduate” up the boy movie spectrum. Matthew McConaughey shifted away from girl movies because he wanted an Oscar and he hasn’t looked back since. Ryan Gosling tried to move on, but came crawling back with Barbie. Someone like Keanu, who did the gay thing and the goofy comedy thing and the Nancy Meyers thing, has never really had to fight to be taken seriously as a boy actor. Where Dev fits into the larger conversation relies entirely on what he does next. If he shifts back into Wes Anderson mode (which I actually think he’s a perfect fit for, if Wes would only upgrade him to a leading role in a feature) there’s a chance he could forever remain under the girl movie umbrella. If he stays within the action realm, we can only hope that he doesn’t forget his roots. I don’t know if there’s a way to balance both — rather, I think there is a way to balance both, but it would make Dev into something of a pioneer. But if anyone has the capability to do it, it’s the filmmaker who turned his big Dude Gets Punched movie into a statement about trans rights. I guess what I’m saying is… The Third Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, anyone?

• I wrote about Ripley, a real great gowns, beautiful gowns of a show. Should I do a Talented Mr. Ripley issue one of these days? Lately, in moments of distress, I’ve taken to watching Philip Seymour Hoffman’s entrance in that movie over and over until I feel normal again. Think what her husband’s saying. Huhuhuhuh.