The Monkey’s Teeth (1961)
aka Les dents du singe
Article 5591 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 12-3-2018
Directed by Rene Laloux
No cast
Country: France
What it is: Therapeutic oddity

A dentist steals his patient’s teeth to give to a rich person. Will the patient find justice?

This short popped up unexpectedly as an extra on my copy of FANTASTIC PLANET. It has a very interesting backstory; Rene Laloux took part in an experiment where he made an animated film in which the story and characters were developed by people in a mental health home. Perhaps it’s no surprise that the resulting short would be more than a little strange; parts of the story are vague and some of it doesn’t make much sense, but it nevertheless makes for a fascinating viewing. The very premise has a strong element of horror, and the story also involves a “monkey magician” as a character (I’m glad I was told that’s what it was, because I wasn’t really sure). This one is very interesting and unusual.