Primate

It’s been a bit since we last saw a really good creature feature horror film that wasn’t played to comedic leanings, a cheap mockbuster, or completely missed its potential. As an example, I enjoyed the hell out of Cocaine Bear, but that was because it was more funny and gory than actually scary. I thought the concept for 2025's Anaconda was a perfect setup, but y'know, it helps when your giant snake movie actually has a giant snake for longer than the last 20 minites. Before this year, I couldn’t recall the last man-vs-nature creature feature horror picture that plastered me to the back of my theater seat, then along came Johannes Roberts’ Primate. While it could easily be dismissed as “Cujo with a monkey,” it's much better than that simple reduction as the film sets stakes early, moves fast, and rips off plenty of faces and limbs in a swift 88-minutes of ape-fueled carnage. 

Our little feature opens with Lucy (Johnny Sequoyah) on her way back to her Hawaiian home from college with her BFF Kate (Victoria Wyant) and tag-along pal Hanna (Jess Alexander). Reuniting with her deaf father and successful novelist Adam (Troy Kostur) and sister Erin (Gia Hunter), Lucy is especially excited to see her chimpanzee “brother” Ben (creature performer Miguel Torres Umba). But Ben isn’t exactly your average bonobo. Highly intelligent, Ben was taught from birth by Lucy and Erin’s recently deceased mother to communicate through sign language and advanced tech. But when Ben is bitten by a rabid mongoose, Lucy’s breezy summer homecoming will become a nightmare of survival.

Is Primate the greatest horror flick of a generation? Heck no, but damn was it fun to watch in a crowded theater! I haven't seen that many people squirm uncomfortably in their seats in a long time!  To his credit, Johannes Roberts has always displayed a knack for staging chilling sequences in semi-mediocre films, but for Primate, he really came to play. Of his catalog of recent flicks, 47 Meters Down is a kick. 47 Meters Down Uncaged is a pretty limp follow-up, but there were some deliriously creepy sequences. His Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City didn’t move that franchise needle much, but he delivered a few gnarly moments, and it was at least better than that dreadful, ill-fated show. 

Primate is probably Johannes Roberts’ best film, front to back, to date. We meet our characters quickly, establish their relationships, understand why Ben is so smart, and set up his gory, rabid rampage within 30 minutes. From there, it’s an hour of gnarly, morbid monkey mayhem that delivers everything it promised in the trailers and then some.

What I loved most about this film was its focus on practical creature effects rather than some goofy, weightless CGI creation. When you’re watching a small man in a well-made monkey suit rip off some hapless twit’s face - you believe it! I also appreciated that the film didn’t reduce itself to Ben just tapping a tablet to “talk.” There are a couple of scenes where that plays, but otherwise it’s Ben communicating in a way only Lucy, her sister Erin, and her father can understand, and that silence is far more chilling than a robotic voice. 

So sure, yeah, admittedly, it might not be a new horror classic, but damn, Primate was a hell of a lot of fun. It knew what it was, and best of all, it lived up to expectations. Simple, to the point, some genuinely terrifying sequences, and plenty of practical gore VFX to splatter around, it's a film best enjoyed with a big group of people. 

Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-ray 
Without evolving onto a 4K disc, Primate rests on a single-disc Blu-ray + Digital release from Paramount. Pressed on a BD50 disc (but leaves about 12 gigs on the floor), the disc is housed in a standard case with identical slipcover art. The disc loads to a static image main menu with standard navigation options. Being a paramount title, the digital slip is not Movies Anywhere compatible.

Primate may not enjoy a 4K disc release, at least not yet, but it does make some pretty solid mincemeat out of 1080p. If I have any kind of gripe to share, it’s that the image can look oddly flat at times - especially where there’s any kind of CGI scenery extensions for the remote Hawaiian cliffside where the house resides. This is especially true at nightfall, when the house is steeped in creepy darkness and shadows. It looks pretty damn good, but in those moments, I’d be willing to wager 2160p with HDR would help give those scenes more pop and depth. Other than that very slight nitpick, this is a strong transfer. Details are sharp and clear without issue. Facial features, textures, the practical Ben ape effects, and a lot of the gore effects look terrific. Again, it’s a little obvious when some CGI enhancements were employed, but for the most part, they look grounded and realistic. Colors are strong with bold primaries. Black levels are generally very good, with no crush issues.

The beast of this A/V presentation is the excellent Dolby Atmos track. From the lush foliage to the creepy, spacious areas of the house to the crushing waves at the bottom of the cliff, Primate makes good use of the extra channel space. It’s more of a subtle Atmos approach, but the sound design makes good use of the overheads, so it’s not just space-filler channel spreading. LFE impacts are a little subdued, but they’re also more purposeful; the thumps land when that ape crashes into a door or window. This isn’t a wall-to-wall action film so activity comes in fits and spurts as our group of hapless yutes tries to get away from that rabid ape. But when called for, screams, crashes, and all sorts of squishy carnage find their moments in the soundscape. The best asset for this film is the excellent score from Adrian Johnston with a 1980s synth-heavy vibe. If you’d lied and told me it was a remix of John Carpenter’s score for Christine, I’d have easily believed you, it’s that creepy and effective (also amazing earworm material for work!). And, speaking of sound design, there’s a hell of a sequence with Troy Kotsur where all of the sound disappears, and it builds to one hell of a payoff!

Bonus features aren’t exactly expansive, but they’re not void of depth or material either. The featurettes tap out at just over a half an hour combined, but it’s a really good half hour of material focusing on aspects of bringing Ben to life, production design, cast, and a sit-down with the director. And speaking of Johannes Roberts, he and producer Walter Hamada deliver an interesting and worthwhile commentary track. So not a ton of material, but quality makes up for quantity.

• Audio Commentary featuring Johannes Roberts and Walter Hamada
• Primal Terror: Directing Primate (HD 9:29)
• New Blood: The Faces of Primate (HD 10:01)
• Creating Ben (HD 11:22)
• Designing Paradise (HD 7:01)

A fun, creepy, and often thrilling horror film doesn’t always have to be the best thing ever made to be effective and entertaining. I think a little too much weight is placed on “elevated horror,” especially when it’s so often another piece of derivative “grief horror.” It’s refreshing when a horror picture has a tantalizing premise and delivers simple scares with ample gore, featuring a solid cast and a skilled director behind the camera. It’s frustrating when you can see a horror picture thinking too hard about trying to be scary. That isn’t to say Primate is a stupid film. It’s intelegence comes from knowing what it is and exploiting all available assets for maximum effect.

The film is a swift ride that gets in and gets out without wasting any time, leaving a path of mutilated humans in its wake. I had a blast in theaters, and the film still holds up on home video - even if we’re only getting a standard Blu-ray (for now, hopefully). The transfer is strong for what it can deliver, but I have a hunch that 2160p and an HDR grade would help push it over the edge. The Atmos track is a banger; it’s not wall-to-wall action, but it delivers the right kind of impact when we ask for it bulding suspense with big payoffs. Bonus features might not be numerous, but, they’re focused and informative. While I hold out hope that Paramount or a boutique label will deliver a 4K disc, I can’t deny this is a solid pickup on Blu-ray - Recommended