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Thanks to a delayed train, the cops are able to nab a murder suspect, and a homicide detective interviews a Capuchin monkey called Jack Cruz over the crime. That’s the absurd, surreal plot of David Lynch’s short film “What Did Jack Do?,” written, directed, and edited by him.
Seventeen minutes long, “What Did Jack Do?” feels like it was made on a whim by the director, perhaps after watching edited AI videos of animals and historical figures speaking through digital manipulation. In the film, Jack Cruz, the monkey, has human lips superimposed over his face to do the talking, and while it’s slightly funny in the first few minutes, the comical effect wears out and you begin to wonder what is happening?
The interview between the detective (played by David Lynch) and the monkey feels like they are throwing movie dialogues from the 1950s/60s at each other, and for all you know, maybe the script was generated by AI too. All the while, the detective tries to get Jack to confess his crime – for shooting Max, who had his eyes on Jack’s love Toototabon. The cinematography is black-and-white, with deliberate grainy film overlay to lend it a retro look, and if it weren’t for the monkey, you’d think you’re watching something from decades ago.
After a point, even the 17-minute runtime begins to feel too long, and despite the weirdly hilarious plot, I didn’t find “What Did Jack Do?” particularly entertaining. If the premise of David Lynch interviewing a monkey sounds amusing (of course it does), watch it and form your own opinion, because this short film feels way too random.
You can watch “What Did Jack Do?” on Netflix.
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