Review by kevin_robbins

I recently watched Caged Animal (2010) on Tubi. The storyline follows Cain, a crime boss serving a life sentence in prison who used to run things on the inside before essentially going into retirement. The prison warden asks him to talk to the youth to prevent them from following his path. He's reluctant to help until his son is thrown in jail with him. Now in need of some favors, he reluctantly agrees to help the warden in exchange for assistance with his son's prison assignments.

This film is directed by Ryan Combs (Double Tap) and stars Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction), Nipsey Hussle (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Robert Patrick (Terminator 2), Robert LaSardo (The Mule), and Jeanette Branch (Power Book II: Ghost).

Caged Animal is uneven, mixing glimpses of greatness with some scenes that are complete disasters. The cast is solid, with Ving Rhames delivering an excellent performance with presence and depth, and Nipsey Hussle reminding me of a young Snoop Dogg. Unfortunately, the fight scenes and shootouts are poorly executed. The storyline had potential and works better in some ways than others, but I did enjoy the full-circle conclusion.

In conclusion, Caged Animal is an average prison drama that's worth watching only for Ving Rhames and/or prison genre fans. I would score this a 5/10 and recommend it only with the appropriate expectations.