A nod to Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, the less literarily-titled Space Chimps opens with Richard Strauss’ aural icon, Also sprach Zarathustra, accompanied by aerial circus tricks performed by Ham III (Andy Samberg), a stunt-chimp decked out in full Evel Knievel regalia and coasting on the reputation of his grandfather, the first monkey in space. The idea (I think) is for Ham to evolve – not biologically, as per the species in Odyssey, but mentally – from a selfish, thrill-seeking ape, to a responsible member of society by accelerating out into space. It’s a pity, then, that the film’s dialogue so swarms with monkey puns that it’s impossible to make out any character development.
Luckily for Ham’s non-existent ethos, The Senator (Stanley Tucci), a slick human politicker, is looking to put a gimmicky spin on the crash of an unmanned rover onto a planet with potential life. The Senator recruits Ham, along with simian compatriots Titan (a Buzz Aldrin type, voiced by Patrick Warburton) and Luna (Cheryl Hines), a well-composed, intelligent female archetype, to explore the cosmos. Meanwhile, on the distant planet, Zartog (Jeff Daniels), initially an innocuous crank of an alien, turns tyrannical after using the rover’s technology to force the alien masses to build him a model Bellagio palace. Ham’s theoretical maturation begins when the chimps land on the planet, cross paths with Zartog and struggle with the decision to either escape or liberate the slaves.
I say ‘theoretical,’ because I was hardly convinced that Ham’s decision to help the inhabitants or his unique ability to stay awake during high-speed rocket blasts and man the spacecraft are indicative of a newfound work ethic and not merely symptoms of his impulse for cheap thrills and dependence on genetic lineage. Any dialogue that would suggest Ham’s maturation is eclipsed by the ongoing puns exchanged between Ham and Titan – “We’ll just have to chimprovise,” “Let’s chimp this ride,” and “You’re a chimp off the old block” are all uttered within a 100-second interval. Moreover, serious discourse comes off as vague: “Imagine what you’re afraid of and then imagine overcoming it,” is Ham’s banal advice that somehow convinces a timid, toddler-proportioned space refugee to launch herself headfirst into the mouth of a flesh-eating monster. Space Chimps does, however, provide a provocative portrayal of Western cultural arrogance. The rover, for example, comes equipped with a forced slideshow, a la A Clockwork Orange, that flashes pictures of humanity’s cultural icons – including the Eiffel Tower and the hotel Bellagio – and spurs Zartog’s tyrannical compulsion to build imitations. Likewise, Titan’s response to the aliens is to wrap them in Mylar, ship them to earth and dissect them – hardly any better than what Zartog’s already doing.
The film also provides its younger audience with a multi-perspective awareness. Despite never being taken seriously by The Senator or other humans – they are recruited only for the advertorial power of shooting monkeys into space and continuously exploiting them for their novelty – Ham, Luna and Titan assert themselves as heroes from their own perspective and from that of the foreign planet’s inhabitants, thus proving that self-worth is not hopelessly dependent on universal recognition.

Stephanie Wu