Summer of the Monkeys (film)

Summer of the Monkeys
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Michael Anderson
Written by	Wilson Rawls (book) Greg Taylor (teleplay) Jim Strain (teleplay)
Produced by	David Doerksen
Starring	Michael Ontkean Leslie Hope Corey Sevier Katie Stuart Don Francks Wilford Brimley
Cinematography	Michael Storey
Edited by	Lenka Svab
Music by	George Blondheim
Distributed by	Walt Disney Home Video
Release date	December 18, 1998 (1998-12-18)
Running time	101 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	English
Budget	$20 million
Box office	$24 million

Summer of the Monkeys is a 1998 American/Canadian family adventure-drama film directed by Michael Anderson based on the children's novel Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls. It stars Corey Sevier as Jay Berry Lee and Michael Ontkean and Leslie Hope as Jay Berry's parents. It also stars Katie Stuart, Don Francks, and Wilford Brimley.

Plot

In the summer of the early 20th century, a group of circus monkeys escape from a circus and end up in the Oklahoma river bottoms, where the main character, Jay Berry Lee lives with his family.

Weeks later, 14-year-old Jay Berry Lee is fighting a bully named Toby on the last day of school when Jay steals his prized pocketknife. Their teacher Miss Freeman stops the fight, returning the pocketknife to Toby. Jay later visits a man, Mr. Patterson, at his horse ranch and is desperate to buy Annie - his favorite horse. Mr. Patterson promises Annie to Jay if he pays no less than $75. When Jay returns home, he is punished for the fight. When Daisy, his crippled sister, sneaks a biscuit to him, she sees Jay's drawings of the horse. She then explains her own resentment, as their parents forbid her physical activity.

The next morning, Jay arrives at his Grandpa Sam Ferrans' general store looking for a job. On the way there, his dog Rowdy goes to explore the forbidden river bottoms. Jay hears monkeys screeching in the distance and after visiting the store, he discovers the monkeys camping on the drunk Bayliss Hatcher's property. Jay tells Daisy his discovery, but she doesn't believe him. Jay returns to his grandfather's store and finds a wanted poster of the monkeys, paired with a bounty of $85. Toby and two other bullies also find the poster and set out to trap them. Jay makes a trail of apples leading the monkeys to the family farm, to trap them under a heavy box. The trap fails, so Jay borrows a monkey doll from Daisy for bait and places a bear trap. The monkeys arrive, and mess up the entire house. Daisy sets out to follow Jay to the bottoms, when Bayliss Hatcher steps in the bear trap and accidentally shoots his gun into the sky. Scared by the gunshot, she falls down a steep hill. Jay hears Daisy calling for help and comes to her rescue. Their parents, seeing the monkey's mess, get into an argument with Jay and ground him from working at Sam's store for the next two weeks.

The next day, Jay runs back to the river bottoms to get revenge on the monkeys. He finds a box of ashes and runs to Bayliss' cabin to make a deal with him about the monkeys. Bayliss finds out that he set the bear trap and gets angry. Sam finds Jay and decides to take him to Ridgewell to research the monkeys. Jay's parents are reluctant as Jay has been disobedient, but Sam tells Mrs. Lee about when he didn't let her go to the fair to visit a pig she wanted to see. His parents agree. Sam takes Jay to the library where Jay meets a woman named Rose who tells him information and many ways to train the monkeys. Sam shows Jay the house Bayliss used to live in and tells Jay that Bayliss' family left him due to his drinking. Later, when returning with Rowdy to the bottoms, Jay saves Jacques from Toby's bear trap. Toby, in a fight with Jay. hits Rowdy with the bear trap, injuring the dog. Bayliss Hatcher scares the bullies away and heals Jay and Rowdy.

After Jay returns home, he sets up a place in the barn for the monkeys. A storm arrives, destroying the farm's surroundings. Afterwards, Jay discovers Bayliss' cabin was destroyed, and that Bayliss has died. Heartbroken, Jay goes with his father to get supplies for repairs. Before they go, Daisy shows her family a garden of mushrooms that have appeared. Jay discovers that Jacques the monkey is dying and takes him home for care. The other monkeys also arrive. The owner Jobert arrives at the farm and gives Jay $85 for finding them.

In the morning, Jay borrows Annie from the ranch and gives Daisy a horseback ride. Jay notices his father making a horse stall for Annie and tells him not to, explaining that the $85 will instead pay for Daisy's operation. Daisy overhears, and gives Jay a hug. Jay then walks Annie back to the ranch.

Cast

• Michael Ontkean as John Lee
• Leslie Hope as Sara Lee
• Wilford Brimley as Grandpa Sam Ferrans
• Corey Sevier as Jay Berry Lee
• Katie Stuart as Daisy Lee
• Don Francks as Bayliss Hatcher
• Andre Theiren as Jobert
• B.J. McLellan as Toby
• Kim Schraner as Rose
• Melissa Lozoff as Miss Freeman
• Wayne Best as Mr. Patterson

Production and release

The book was adapted into a film in 1997 by Edge Productions in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, received a limited theatrical release in both Canada and the United States in 1998, and was released on home video in the United States by Walt Disney Home Video, a subsidiary of Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc. It takes place in rural Canada and featured Heritage Park Historical Village 0-6-0 Steam Locomotive #2024 as the Circus train. It was built by Lima Locomotive Works in 1944 and originally US Army Locomotive #4076. Shots of the park's town were also used for town scenes.

Reception

Common Sense Media gave the movie 4/5 stars. It gained an 8+ rating, stating "adventurous family drama is okay for older kids."
In a negative review, Leonard Kladley of Variety.com wrote, "While the sentiments are noble, the storytelling is banal and predictable. Script by Greg Taylor and Jim Strain is cookie-cutter clean and shamelessly telegraphs its points."