The Monkey (2025) is a horror-comedy based on Stephen King’s short story from 1980. The film adaptation is written and directed by Osgood Perkins who had recent success with the psychological thriller Longlegs (2024).

Check out our heart racing analysis of Longlegs here.

We did not show our subject the trailer but she knew the film involved a creepy monkey from the movie posters. Her fear of monkeys stems from a childhood experience with the inanimate object so she was hesitant to join along in our fun. Find out if The Monkey (2025) was as terrifying as the toy. Read our results below!

SYNOPSIS:

When twin brothers Bill and Hal find their father’s old monkey toy in the attic, a series of gruesome deaths start. The siblings decide to throw the toy away and move on with their lives, growing apart over the years.

Where to Watch: In Theaters

Test Subject: Michelle

Age: 45

Gender: Female

Fears: Pithecophobia or fear of monkeys

Resting HR: 60-65bpm

Walking HR: 80-85bpm

ANALYSIS:

The Monkey (2025) shot out of the cage with suspense, humor and gore. Our subject’s heart rate began to flutter within the first five minutes. In fact, anytime there was a slow camera push into the sinister looking monkey, we would record minor fluctuations. The film established the gore factor early on which kept our subject on the edge of her seat. As the death toll began to rise, the kills multiplied in horrendous and humorous ways. Many of our subject’s pulse escalations were caused by laughter which we factored in to her final average.

Our subject had little time to empathize with the characters being offed. There were a few slow deaths but many of the grotesque kills happened so fast, there wasn’t time to build up tension. They did provide sudden jumps and jolts but the lack of suspense prevented our subject’s pulse from reaching terrifyingly high levels. As the movie progressed, the scenes got more outlandish which left our subject’s heart rate wavering above her resting rate of 65bpm. Many of the higher heart rate numbers we recorded came from a physical reaction whether it was laughing out loud or a jumping in her seat. There was one major escalation worth notating which came toward the finale. Our subject empathized with a young character and it was one of the few times that the film created true stress and anxiety. This tension produced a peak 92bpm making it the scariest sequence in the film.

CONCLUSION:

The Monkey is a gory riot best served with a couple of adult beverages. It’s a party movie, being more fun than scary with Final Destination type kills that make for a jokingly gruesome night out.

The Monkey (2025): Burns an average of 196 Calories

Chunky Monkey Ice Cream: 400 Calories

How many Fear Calories did you burn watching The Monkey (2025) ?  Let us know in the comments below or on Instagram, and Facebook