Animal - Il criminale

... rushed execution and obviously not a lot of production value(s). You could live with the latter, but the performances aren't the best either. Of course it's nice to see Ving Rhames in a lead role, but it'd be even better, if the script got sharpened too, so it would match his performance skills too.

The title of the movie gives you the main character and you also know, from the (V) behind the movies name here at IMDb, that it is directly produced for Video/DVD use. Terence Malick does elevate the movie too, but not as much as you'd think he would! The story (if you really want to know it before you watch it, read it here somewhere on the IMDb page) has been done before, so you might be used to see better movies, than this one on this particular topic ...

This a real movie about thug life and the inescapable revolving door trap that is so hard to break. Ving Rhames plays the animal which is not an accurate name for his character ,since his character is no different than a mob boss or a drug cartel kingpin.... this is how you have to be to survive on the streets.. excellent acting by Jim Brown who in real life is a PEACE ACTIVIST.. Ving Rhames does an excellent performance ,, who i think is worthy of an academy award nomination....Chazz Palminteri also performed well as a supporting actor.... this is a must see movie for Kids going down the wrong path in life,, since it shows the consequences of a leading a violent lifestyle....

Being my first time to watch Rhames in a lead role, I was impressed. Howard and Palminteri were brilliant and Studi, as always, was great!..though not the type of role he usually plays either. Great to see Jim brown after so long and I really liked his portrayal of Berwell. I'd like to see more of him in the future because despite his years, he still has a lot to offer. Listen up Hollywood! On the negative side (for fussy duds like me), we have the factual errors all-too-common in movies which mislead people on points of historical importance. I refer to the Willie Lynch Speech on slavery, which figures prominently in this movie. Berwell tells Animal that the term "lynching" is also attributed to the same author. Not true! This practice is more generally believed to be the invention of Captain William Lynch of Virginia, author of "Lynch's Law". As for Willie's speech, evidence now suggests it was written in the mid-to-late 20th century. Curious, no? Anyway, despite the foregoing, the movie has a good message and the overall acting is way better than good! Definitely a movie worth watching!

Ving Rhames plays "animal" the toughest guy on the street. Naturally he ends up in prison where he meets an old con, Berwell, played by football great Jim Brown. Berwell tries to make him understand that all the hate in society is part of a conspiracy led by the rich and powerful to keep the poor and middle class fighting among themselves. Divide and conquer. THEY want us to hate blacks and whites and hispanics. And hate homeless and homosexuals and convicts. And hate muslims and jews and catholics. If we're busy doing that, then we won't hate the rich and powerful - the ones we should hate.

Anyway, he explains this to animal and i'll let you watch the movie to see how much impact it has. I really liked this show but then, i like most prison movies.

This is the story of a man nick named Animal. Baddest of the bad, Animal was the head of a crew in ghetto neighborhood he lived in. One day he's arrested and sent to jail leaving behind a wife and child. While in jail for years he continues his violent ways, at the same time his son takes after his old man and becomes known as "Little Animal". With the help of a fellow prisoner Animal changes his way and is eventually paroled. Back at home he now must struggle with carving a out a new life while trying to figure out out how to save his son from ending up like him, or worse.

I stumbled upon this film by accident and I'm glad I did. Animal is a brutal, heartfelt look at life in the "hood", how nothing ever changes, and what it takes to change things. Its a well told story that has some of the best performances of the year in any film. Every one in this movie is excellent from Ving Rhames on down. The acting alone is reason enough to see this film, however there is a very real story being told. It will move you and break your heart.

Forgive me I finished the film not long ago and I still feel the effects of this wonderful movie.Its left me with a loss of words. I think all I can really say is see this film and be moved too.