“Primate” is a 2025 American natural horror film directed by Johannes Roberts, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ernest Riera. The film stars Johnny Sequoyah, Jessica Alexander, and Troy Kotsur. It follows a tropical vacation that takes a terrifying turn when Ben, a family’s adopted chimpanzee, is bitten by a rabid animal and suddenly becomes violent. The film’s terror is unique, and despite having no headline actors in the cast, it effectively presents its horror.
The story is set in a remote area of Hawaii, a place that apparently does not have rabies. A filmmaker’s daughter visits after a long absence, and she, along with some friends and family—including the family pet chimp—decides to throw a party. Unfortunately, Ben, who has learned to communicate with the family using sign language and electronic devices, finds out the hard way that another animal has broken into his cage, bitten him, and he has developed rabies without anyone being aware of it. The subsequent terror is graphic, at times jump-out-of-your-seat horrific, and ultimately quite entertaining.
I was captivated by the possibilities presented in the first trailers and later watched audience reaction videos, eagerly anticipating the film’s national release. I managed to write my review two days before it opened, but unfortunately lost it in the digital ether, forcing me to redo the entire thing.
The scenery, story, editing, and sound are all commendable for a thriller and horror film. I appreciate that a movie can be both grotesque and scary while being presented in a fun, professional manner.
The film explores strong themes of friendship and family, including the concept of who or what can be considered family. As an animal lover myself, I have often referred to my pets as part of the family. Are they? I don’t think any animal lover could be convinced otherwise. However, the film raises questions about what happens when an intelligent chimpanzee—or any pet at that level of intellect—develops a terrible disease, such as rabies. How do we love and care for them, and when do we recognize the differences between humans and animals, especially when humans are affected?
The film also poses important questions about how far we are willing to go to stand up for and fight for others, even those we may not like. Do we develop viewpoints based on whether something is human or animal, and how do we put our beliefs into action?
While Primate is scary and gross at times, it has a good, thought-provoking story and is rather original in many ways. It is my enjoyment of this movie that, on a scale of 1 – 10 has me giving it a credible 7.5
