Yeah, looks like a David Lynch movie, alright.
What Did Jack Do? is a 2020 Short Film directed by David Lynch and released on Netflix. The film consists of 15 minutes of Lynch playing a detective interrogating a talking capuchin monkey named Jack that may or may not be guilty of murder.
Tropes present in this short film:
- As Himself: Jack Cruz and Toototabon are credited as themselves.
- Crosscast Role: Despite the pseudonym, Jack is actually portrayed by Katie
, a female monkey who is probably best known for her role as Marcel on Friends.
- Crosscast Role: Despite the pseudonym, Jack is actually portrayed by Katie
- Cryptic Conversation: In true David Lynch Mind Screw-y fashion.
- Deliberately Monochrome: The entire short is in black and white.
- Film Noir: Or perhaps a parody thereof.
- In Medias Res: Very little context is given to us at the beginning of the short. Instead, the backstory is doled out to us through conversation as the film progresses.
- Interspecies Romance: Jack has apparently had relations with both a chicken and an orangutan. The detective barely bats an eye at this.
- Maniac Monkeys: Downplayed. Jack is suspected of murder, but he's certainly not a demented thrill killer, and there's never any indication that it's specifically because he's a monkey.
- Murder the Hypotenuse: Implied to be Jack's potential motive for the crime.
- Must Have Coffee: Jack is frustrated that the coffee he ordered is taking so long.
- Creator Thumbprint: Coffee is a trademark of David Lynch's persona, featuring most prominently on Twin Peaks ("Damn good coffee!"). Lynch also has his own organic brand.
- No Name Given: David Lynch's character is only referred to in the credits as "Detective".
- Non-Mammal Mammaries: Jack rather lovingly describes the feeling of Toototabon's luscious breasts. Toototabon is a chicken.
- Not Helping Your Case: Jack really goes out of his way to act as suspiciously as possible.
- Talking Animal: Jack is a sentient monkey that is perfectly capable of speech (and toward the end, bursts into song as well). None of the human characters seem to find this at all strange. It is implied that Sally, an orangutan, can speak as well.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: The fantastical elements of the story are all presented in completely matter-of-fact terms, as if they're actually pretty standard in this film's universe.
