The Animal Kingdom

An unusual phenomenon is spreading in the world. Humans randomly start mutating into animals. The cause of this process is unknown, and the treatments do not give results. The film focuses on a high school student who lives with his father, while his mother is in the process of mutation in a specialized institution.

"The Animal Kingdom" is a coming-of-age drama with elements of fantasy and horror and some humor. It can be interpreted in various ways, literally and metaphorically, but I don't want to get into that multitude of interpretations, let everyone judge for themselves. I will present only my impressions, positive and negative.

The film is visually beautiful. Cinematography, make-up, and effects are superb, and for much less money than in Hollywood. The creatures, for lack of a better term, are striking and endearing. Romain Duris is good in the role of the father, and Paul Kircher in the role of the son gave an Oscar-worthy performance. I like the messages that the film sends, and the main asset is certainly the originality of the premise and the approach to it.

However, in my opinion, the script is too weak for such an original and interesting idea. The story is insufficiently developed, especially for a film of over two hours. You will not find out how and why these mutations occur and on what scale. If humans devolved into lower primates, the film would fall into the realm of sci-fi, but as they randomly mutate into literally anything and everything, not just mammals, but insects, reptiles, amphibians, and birds, I'd rather classify it as fairy tale fantasy, which conflicts with the very realistic tone of the film. I get the impression that "The Animal Kingdom" got dissolved in trying to cover too many themes and send too many messages across too many genres, and as a result, it felt sketchy and tepid. The authors bit off more than they could swallow and failed to fulfill the big potential of the project they embarked on.

Overall, a technically good but essentially disappointing film. Still, it's worth watching, if for no other reason than for the contrast to the garbage America is showering us with, the original ideas and performance of Paul Kircher.

7/10.

The term "multilayered" is so overused in reviews but this is the first word that came into my mind as i am writing this. This is the definition of a "multilayered" movie. There are so many interpretations for this movie, even contradictory to each other. But it's not even an "open to interpretation" movie, i mean, you can take literally what is happening here, it's not necessary to look for metaphors or allegories. Personally though, i don't think this is a straightforward story. I believe there is a message here, in fact, this is a GREAT message, not like some suspicious and weird Holywood messages. The message here is : UNITY. Don't let powerful people/Governments/International or local Institutions/billionaires and even our inside fears and bad part of ourselves divide us. Power to the people.

Regarding the movie per se : Not just multilayered but even a multiple genre movie. A coming of age dramedy? A drama fantasy? A sci fi thriller? A post apocalyptic movie? A dark comedy/allegory? It's difficult to categorize it. In any case, this was enjoyable, even exciting at times. The biggest flaw here was its running time, this should have been 15 minutes shorter because there were some unnecessary/boring scenes. And the pace was not good at times. But overall, these things were not a distraction. Characters are so likeable that you root hard for them. Duris is a famous, great actor but Kircher was also amazing. Exarchopoulos did also a good job. There were many intense moments, many emotional moments and whilst there were not mindblowing twists, still i couldn't guess exactly where it goes.

The ending was MAGNIFICENT.

More ambitious movies like this, please.

Caught this at the Sci Fi Day of Leeds Film Festival 2023. Like most good Science fiction it's got me thinking and reflecting on the modern issues explored by proxy. It's sort of an ecological anti-othering of different people and a great father and son bonding film.

I don't want to spoil any of the plot which is great. But for me, this film has a rarely seen perfect casting. The son is superb all gangly pout, angst and joy and sympathy. Together his father and him have a spot on relationship and great chemistry.

Every other member of the cast esp his school chums really fit their roles to a T. Ps also loved Fix and Froggy. The make up effects are fantastic too.

This one is going to stay with me for a while.

I was really looking forward to watch this movie since it had such a unique idea with some decent budget behind it. The movie looks beautiful and we are introduced to a fascinating world where some people start to mutate into wild animals or some would say beasts. It's an interesting coming of age story told in a unique fashion. However I think there are definitely some pacing issues and the final result is way too long. I enjoyed spending time in this world but after some while I repeatedly stared at the clock to see how long the movie still runs and that is never a good sign. Also I think the movie was pretty tame and could have delved deeper into its dark side. In the end it's certainly a unique movie but it also is not without its flaws. [5,8/10]

When people start randomly turning into animals, a father and son must keep a secret from a small town.

Firstly this is one of the best opening scenes to a movie I've seen in a while. It sets up the whole premise while circumnavigating your expectations.

It's not a superhero movie but it definitely has the feel of the earlier X-men films. Focusing on teens transitioning into adults/ mutants/ animals.

I doubt The Animal Kingdom had the budget of a Marvel movie but the action is used sparingly and to great effect. Unlike most comic book movies it feels grounded in reality, which makes it even more shocking when a new beast appears.

The relationship between father and son is believable and you want the best for both of them.

Overall, a great coming of age film with a fantasy twist.

If you're new to the 1 inch barrier, than this is a great way to induct yourself into the world of foreign film.

The Animal Kingdom is screening at the French Film Festival now.

@WatchItWombat.