Psycho Ape!

Addison Binek's monkey mindbender "Psycho Ape" has a punk D.I.Y. energy that is infectious and fun. It makes no bones about being made on the cheap and actually celebrates it with shameless gusto. Cheesiness is the movie's raison d'être. It's "Robot Monster" with fur. Sporting a pith helmet and chewing ample amounts of scenery, B-movie superstar Bill Weeden's character Dr. ZOOmis channels Groucho Marx as Dr. Spaulding with devilish glee. Kansas Bowling is a charmer as the fluorescent go-go girl Nancy Banana. I highly recommend "Psycho Ape" to hardcore fans of obscure VHS splatter flicks and to members of the often-maligned cult of banana obsessives (yes, they exist). Bananas are more than just a fetish, they're the Rosebud, in this "Citizen Kane" of ape movies. "Psycho Ape" exists on a double-bill with "Blood Feast" in the grindhouse of my dreams.