Dev Patel Gets Political at Rowdy ‘Monkey Man’ SXSW Premiere: ‘The Action Genre Has Been Abused by the System’

variety.com:

Selome Hailu At a festival known for raucous audiences, Dev Patel‘s “Monkey Man” made for the rowdiest screening yet. During the SXSW premiere of the actor’s directorial debut, Austin’s Paramount Theater was filled with cries of “We love you, Dev!” and “India!” that can only be described as guttural.

The crowd’s love for Patel only grew more fervent as the film went on, revealing not only a new cinematic voice, but a surprisingly political action thriller that saw Patel’s character take on the Hindu caste system with teeth, knives and blood.Dev Patel receives a standing ovation after a #SXSW screening of his feature directorial debut "Monkey Man." pic.twitter.com/OcpjhByVSu “The action genre has been abused by the system,” Patel said while introducing the film. “You know, a quick buck.

Mindless shit. I wanted to give it soul. Real trauma. Real pain. You guys deserve that. I wanted to infuse it with a little bit of culture.” The film follows Kid (Patel), who scrapes by with the cash he makes getting beaten in an underground fight club before unresolved trauma from his childhood drives him to infiltrate the social scene of his city’s wealthiest and most corrupt.

As it becomes clearer that the people who murdered his mother continue to inflict casteist and Islamophobic violence on millions of others, he unites with others on the outskirts of society to get revenge on their common enemies. “I really wanted to touch on the caste system in India,” Patel explained after the screening. “You have the poor at the bottom, slaving away in the kitchens.