As children, twins Hal and Bill find a wind-up monkey that turns out to be cursed: every time it beats its drum, someone close dies in the most grotesque, unpredictable way. Terrified, they get rid of it, but twenty-five years later the toy resurfaces and unleashes a new wave of absurd deaths that forces the now-estranged brothers to reunite and put an end to the curse. Based on a story by Stephen King and directed by Osgood Perkins, it's a horror film with a black-comedy streak that celebrates the elaborate spectacle of death with macabre wit and a knowing smile.