Monkey brandishing her sword
We Need To Go Now!
Monkey
Monkey is a deuteragonist in the film, "Kubo and the Two Strings" She is voiced by Charlize Theron, who previously had roles in Mad Max: Fury Road and The Huntsman: Winter's War.
Information[]
Monkey was originally a talisman, but was brought to life with the magic possessed by Kubo's mother. Monkey has only one mission: Ensuring the protection of Kubo at all costs, especially from the evil Moon King. She has a wit as sharp as her razor edged sword, and all the will of a saint to boot. Monkey is a no-nonsense fighter with minute patience for monkeying around when it comes to the quest she has taken to find the armor of Kubo's father. At first she presents a tough exterior- however it's only to stop her emotions from getting in the way of protecting Kubo. She’s later revealed to be Kubo's mother Sariatu.
Skills[]
Monkey has noteworthy swordsmanship skills and great intuition. Aside from impressive sword orientated close combat, Monkey is also the most agile of her group as well. She can easily climb and scale problematic vertical surfaces with relative ease. Monkey is also shown to have attuned physical strength, jumping relatively high during confrontations with monsters and using her sword to impressively augment her own attacks. It should also be recognized when fighting Karasu aboard Kubo's boat, Monkey kept her on her (levitating) toes with her speed and sword attacks alone.
Personality[]
A gruff and hard exterior encompasses Monkey's true nature, a maternal, caring, and a bit overprotective friend. She loves Kubo, as his mother's magic created her to do so, and will go to any extreme to keep him safe from harm. She has tucked away these feelings of supposed weakness to impose a hard and callous persona when in battle. This suppression of emotions, however, has somewhat dissolved Monkey's sense of trust. It is difficult for her to bond with other people, as shown when first meeting Beetle, Monkey felt worried and believed he was a threat. Eventually she learned to trust him and accepted that Kubo and Beetle helped reveal her true self.
Trivia[]
- During production LAIKA's puppet fabrication group created the first full body fur suit for Monkey. Comprised of tattered and cut rows of silicon, it is the first of it's kind.
- In the old tale: Journey to the West, there is also a Monkey with the same name who shares many aspects with this Monkey both in emotion and combat.
- Monkey's creation is based off a Chinese belief that one's ancestors are protecting them or: Zǔxiān bǎohù. This form of spirituality involves bringing charms, talismans, or familiars to life.
