Animal Kingdom (2010)
*** (out of 4)
Interesting crime-drama from Australia about a 17-year-old boy named J (James Frecheville) who moves in with his grandmother (Jacki Weaver) and uncles after his mother dies from a heroin overdose. It doesn't take long for J to realize why his mom kept him away from the family because they're into some serious crimes and they drag J in with them when they ask him to steal a car and place it in a certain place so that they can murder two cops. The detective (Guy Pierce) working the case believes that J is a good kid who has a chance of going straight so he tries to get him to turn his family in so that he can get away and live a free life. ANIMAL KINGDOM has had a lot of people compare it to WINTER'S BONE, which is probably a good film to compare it to, although it also shares quite a bit in common when Ben Affleck's THE TOWN. I personally didn't find the film to be as great as WINTER'S BONE but it's about on the same level as the Affleck drama that turned out to be a huge hit. The crime genre has been going on for so long that it's often times hard to find something that seems fresh and original. This film certainly doesn't offer anything too new or anything too ground breaking but at the same times there's this strange and sometimes surreal atmosphere that helps keep the thing moving. What I did enjoy about the film is that the screenplay often keeps you off guard about what's happening and how things are going to play out. Being a crime picture you know certain members of the cast are eventually going to get knocked off and they do here but director Michod keeps us off-guard because when the events do happen they happen out of no where and in many ways they don't happen in a way that you'd expect. Weaver picked up an Academy Award nomination and she is quite chilling in the film but I wouldn't go as far as to say she gives one of the year's best performances. The character she plays is a very, very cunning woman who walks up to you with a sweet voice and a smile but will kill you without blinking. I thought she brought that cunning nature to the screen with ease and made the character work. Frecheville is extremely good in his role as the laid back character doesn't say much but you can constantly see him thinking about the situations he's in and thinking of how he can get out of them. Pierce is always good no matter what he does and even though he's not featured too much here he's great when he's on the screen. If there are some weaknesses with the film I think you can aim them at the screenplay as well. I thought the film would have been better served had the viewer been introduced to what all the family was doing before we get to the cop killings. I also think the film could have used a few more scenes to help us connect with J. ANIMAL KINGDOM is a well-made film and the performances are certainly excellent but in the end it still just struck me as a good film and not a great one.
*** (out of 4)
Interesting crime-drama from Australia about a 17-year-old boy named J (James Frecheville) who moves in with his grandmother (Jacki Weaver) and uncles after his mother dies from a heroin overdose. It doesn't take long for J to realize why his mom kept him away from the family because they're into some serious crimes and they drag J in with them when they ask him to steal a car and place it in a certain place so that they can murder two cops. The detective (Guy Pierce) working the case believes that J is a good kid who has a chance of going straight so he tries to get him to turn his family in so that he can get away and live a free life. ANIMAL KINGDOM has had a lot of people compare it to WINTER'S BONE, which is probably a good film to compare it to, although it also shares quite a bit in common when Ben Affleck's THE TOWN. I personally didn't find the film to be as great as WINTER'S BONE but it's about on the same level as the Affleck drama that turned out to be a huge hit. The crime genre has been going on for so long that it's often times hard to find something that seems fresh and original. This film certainly doesn't offer anything too new or anything too ground breaking but at the same times there's this strange and sometimes surreal atmosphere that helps keep the thing moving. What I did enjoy about the film is that the screenplay often keeps you off guard about what's happening and how things are going to play out. Being a crime picture you know certain members of the cast are eventually going to get knocked off and they do here but director Michod keeps us off-guard because when the events do happen they happen out of no where and in many ways they don't happen in a way that you'd expect. Weaver picked up an Academy Award nomination and she is quite chilling in the film but I wouldn't go as far as to say she gives one of the year's best performances. The character she plays is a very, very cunning woman who walks up to you with a sweet voice and a smile but will kill you without blinking. I thought she brought that cunning nature to the screen with ease and made the character work. Frecheville is extremely good in his role as the laid back character doesn't say much but you can constantly see him thinking about the situations he's in and thinking of how he can get out of them. Pierce is always good no matter what he does and even though he's not featured too much here he's great when he's on the screen. If there are some weaknesses with the film I think you can aim them at the screenplay as well. I thought the film would have been better served had the viewer been introduced to what all the family was doing before we get to the cop killings. I also think the film could have used a few more scenes to help us connect with J. ANIMAL KINGDOM is a well-made film and the performances are certainly excellent but in the end it still just struck me as a good film and not a great one.