The Monkey People

Filmed over a period of five years, this visually breathtaking documentary captures the sights and sounds of chimpanzees, orangutans, baboons and langurs across three continents, Asia, Africa, and South America. Narrated by Susan Sarandon, the film offers facts about the "monkey people" while the camera shows the strong relationship between mother and child, the intelligent use of tools, the creative approaches to battle (in one sequence, an ape who is threatened takes a child ape hostage, effectively toning down the attack of his assailant), and a whole host of other social interactions, which often bear a ringing resemblance to human activity. The images are priceless: Japanese monkeys grooming in a hot springs while snow cascades down around them; a determined monkey who tries to crack open a coconut not with his head, but with his butt; and an adult ape who cannot resist the urge to play and does several pratfalls for the sheer joy of it. The problem with The Monkey People, as is the problem with so many nature documentaries, is that the sequences seem to be arranged in a totally serendipitous fashion: monkey sex followed by monkeys swinging through the trees followed by more monkey sex, etc. Still, the film is so visually rich and arresting that it is recommended, with the above reservation. (R. Pitman)