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Deep Dive: Monkey Kingdom (2015)

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Monkey Kingdom
Monkey Kingdom is a nature documentary that follows Maya, a toque macaque, living in the ancient ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka. Born at the bottom of her social hierarchy, Maya's life changes when she encounters Kumar, a handsome male monkey. Their secret mating leads to the birth of their son, Kip, but Maya faces challenges as she raises him alone after Kumar is chased away by the alpha male, Raja. The film captures Maya's resourcefulness as she navigates food scarcity and social dynamics within her troop. She leads the Lowborn monkeys to a lily pond for food and later raids a human home for a birthday feast. The documentary combines stunning visuals of the jungle and the monkeys' interactions, providing insight into their lives and the dangers they face, including predators like monitor lizards.

Why Watch

  • •Follow Maya's unique parenting in the wild.
  • •See monkeys raid a human birthday party.
  • •Meet the Lowborn monkeys and their survival tactics.

Did You Know

•Monkey Kingdom was released on April 17, 2015, by Disneynature.
•The film grossed $16,272,000 by June 2015.
•It has a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 55 reviews.
•The average CinemaScore grade from audiences was 'A−'.

Perfect For

Animal behavior enthusiastsNature documentary fansSri Lanka culture lovers