American Animals

'American Animals' is, formally, a difficult film to describe. It retains the structure of the heist films that came before it, even referencing them from time to time, cementing it as a disciple of those pioneers. Where the film stands out, however, is in the way it tells its story, in a non-linear fashion that seamlessly blends between the reality and fiction of this true-crime narrative. Whereas documentaries often use dramatisations to help visually realise their subject matter, here, these dramatisations take centre stage, supported by the painfully real inflections of those who were actually involved in this 2004 heist. This conflux, use to provide commentary, as well as irregular but welcome flair within the recreated narrative, help to differentiate 'American Animals' from other films of its pedigree. Furthermore, these aforementioned recreations feature standout performances from the likes of Evan Peters and Barry Keoghan, further distancing Layton's film from the somewhat shabby predecessors that deploy similar techniques. On a technical level, the film is fairly regular, lacking inspiration with its cinematography which arguably helps ground the events which it portrays. The score nicely compliments the action on-screen, effectively building upon the tension set up by the visuals. The film can, however, drag in places, particularly during the first act, whereupon it hits familiar story beats that could have been addressed quicker, the time taken with the set-up juxtaposing the otherwise revolutionary approach the film takes to the heist formula. Otherwise, the third act is nothing short of thrilling, with the conclusion proving a melancholic reminder of the reality of these events, and the impact they can carry, with its audacity to allow the audience to decipher the difference between what is true and false. 'American Animals' is a heist film through and through, but differentiates itself from others through the methods by which its tells its story and provides connections between the characters and audience. Whilst the pacing can prove problematic at times, persistence ultimately proves rewarding. Should Layton continue to adopt this unique approach to other genres, he may become a standout in years to come.

Just a sensational story ,, The script writing is brilliant ,, but the most noticeable was the Directing !!! Bart Layton did both and he did one amazing job.. bringing up the characters themselves telling their side of the story was a nice touch.

Casting Evan Peters and Barry Keoghan was a good move ,, they are both rising stars and they take the job seriously , and here they were engaging and so convincing.

Now my issue is ... the movie went on the big screen at the beginning of this year , toured all around the world festivals, and premiered 1st of June on movie theaters ,, yet .. no sound what so ever ,, the marketing is so bad for this movie ,, or it is hated for some reason ,,, or maybe the critics think this is in a way glorifying crime "which isn't"... I knew about this by accidentally looking for some cast members of "American Horror Stories" and clicked on Evan Peters's IMDB page to see what's new ,and this came up !!!

The bad ratings might result because this movie is a mix of documentary and fiction, implementing real protagonists with actors etc, but for me this movie was intense, emotional, stylish filming, good acting and garnished with a cool soundtrack. definitely a must watch and one of the most underrated movies of 2018.

This is an interesting movie to write a review for. I didn't love it but wow is it incredibly put together and I super appreciate the style and choices they made here. American Animals isn't a typically structured movie. Rather than being a standard procession of events portrayed by the actors it flits back and forth between the portrayals and the testimonial narrative of the actual people this is about. The way it plays with that idea of their retelling of the events and how their varied perspectives sometimes play with the portrayal we're given is a fascinating experience and one that I will likely go back to in the future.

Yeah, I think that's where I really come down on this. I want to love this movie because of how much I'm fascinated by the way it chose to tell it's story but it just didn't click with me, which is disappointing. It's just slightly off for some reason for me and I think it's because that style is so cool and the rest of the movie just didn't live up to it for me. Even though the performances were solid, it just didn't stick the landing perfectly. I still think this is worth checking out for most people, if only for the experience of a different kind of movie.

Glad I stuck with this. The unique filmmaking style of Bart Layton can take a little to get used to. If you enjoyed his documentary The Imposter, then you'll probably love this.

American Animals rides that documentary-drama combination to full effect. The ratio here is probably more drama to documentary, unlike the reverse of The Imposter - which this really echoed.

Has to have the best soundtrack of any film I've seen in ages. Can't believe this thing was a true story. The "where are they now" segment at the end was interesting. I feel like we all experience some of the emotions and feelings in life that these guys did - which lead to their heist.

If you're after a crime film that's quite different - then check this out.