Monkey Kingdom

Another Earth Day, another Disneynature documentary, this one following a group of Sri Lankan macaques as they deal with a strict social system and defend their territory from interlopers. The macaques, a Shemp-haired species of monkey, are decidedly less adorable than the stars of last year's Bears, and Monkey Kingdom narrator Tina Fey is a weak substitute for Bears narrator John C. Reilly. Much like Bears, the film focuses in on a struggling single mother dealing with dangers from both outside and inside her troop, but Monkey Kingdom tries too hard to manufacture a storyline. It's never clear why we're supposed to root for one group of monkeys to defeat another group of monkeys, except that some of the “bad” monkeys have facial scars, and facial scars equal evil. Monkey Kingdom is a passable time-passer, with lovely visuals and positive if oversimplified messages about conservation and motherhood, but nothing more. D.B.