Fantastic Film Fest 2025 Review - Monkey’s Magic Merry Go Round
Images courtesy of Original Spin.
Monkey’s Magic Merry Go Round is an audacious leap into analogue horror that skilfully marries the nostalgic charm of children’s television with a creeping, unsettling dread and forebodingly surreal stylistic turns. In his feature debut, director Aidan Leary constructs a hellish carnival of memories, madness, and puppetry that dares its audience to question the nature of reality and innocence. The film opens with a whimsical musical number - set against a backdrop of meticulously recreated VHS aesthetics and period-accurate visuals - that lulls you into a false sense of security before fracturing it with hints of impending terror. This deliberate juxtaposition is one of the film’s most enticing qualities, inviting viewers to reminisce about lost childhoods while simultaneously confronting the darker recesses of memory.
At the heart of the narrative is James “Jimmy/Jimbo” Jensen - a kindly, Mr. Rogers-esque children’s TV show host played with earnest vulnerability by Michael Gilio. Gilio’s performance anchors the film, capturing a man whose gentle exterior is belied by the internal chaos of his repressed history, and given this is his first acting credit in over a decade, it's a triumph given the extremely confined space he has to work in, with nary a human co-star in sight. The overall vibe and setup should be familiar to the many of us who grew up on Blue's Clues, but as the plot unfurls, James finds himself entangled in a web of forgotten memories that resurface with disruptive force during an innocuous broadcast. The unique atmosphere sets up his puppet co-stars as both allies and antagonising forces, with little details like a scratch on Monkey’s human hands effectively unnerving viewers without outright veering into cheap Five Nights at Freddy's-like tropes.
The production design deserves special mention. Every frame is layered with meticulously crafted details - from the grainy, VHS-inspired visuals to the tactile realism of the puppet designs - that underscore the film’s thematic exploration of decay and distorted recollection through the dark side of nostalgia. The eerie silence is punctuated by sudden, jarring audio cues and the use of props like a flickering match, a bottle of whiskey, and a half-remembered family home, all of which work to evoke a relentless atmosphere of disquiet. These elements, though at times bordering on the overly familiar, imbue the film with a distinctive, dreamlike quality that challenges traditional narrative structures without sacrificing emotional resonance.
Monkey’s Magic Merry Go Round may stumble in its pacing: by telegraphing the overall route of its narrative ahead of time, these very imperfections contribute to its enigmatic charm. Leary’s bold vision and willingness to experiment with both form and tone ensure that this film stands as an innovative - and deeply affecting - entry in the analogue/childhood horror genre. For those willing to surrender to its eerie carousel ride, the film offers a memorably fucked up dive into the interplay between memory and nightmare.
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Monkey’s Magic Merry Go Round is screening as part of Fantastic Film Festival Australia 2025. The festival runs from the 24th of April to the 16th of May. Check out the festival website for tickets and more info here.