American Animal

When I first walked into the film, I wanted to have an open mind about what I would be watching, and I can honestly say I'm glad I did. American Animal was really interesting as it combined the feeling of an art-house film, with the song "Lazy Sunday". I thought it had some genuinely funny moments, while raising a couple social issues that are pretty present in my life. I had a fun time watching it and made me happy to see an Indie director put his work on the screen.

I've seen a lot of films about eccentric personalities, (mostly because I have one myself) but Jimmy really out did himself in this one. When I was first introduced to him in the film, I got the impression that he was a "seize the day" kind of guy and that he was going to be a fun character. While I was watching the film I really got invested in his character and thought he was one of the strongest part of the film. While we was a bit grating at times, he had some really heartfelt moments and was definitely the most memorable part of the film.

American Animal is a very strange and thought provoking film that portrays the life of two best friends, Jimmy and James, who live in a bubble. They both have all the money they will ever need from their parents, and thus they have nothing to do but eat, sleep, have sex, and squalor. The juxtaposition between their life outlooks however keeps you sucked into the movie and wondering where each of these characters will end up. Jimmy, the drugged, animalistic, jobless, and idealistic friend, who has a severely skewed perception of reality, lives in a world with no rules. James however, is the character that represents someone who wants to have a job, give back, and make something out of his life by being an active participant in society. James's discontent with Jimmy's brain-dead outlook and stagnant life creates an immense amount of friction between the two, causing the viewer to stop and think, what is life all about? If you had all the money in the world would you remove yourself from reality and selfishly enjoy false physical pleasures, or would you give back to the world that gave you so much and keep trying to become a better person? As twisted as American Animal is, these valuable questions are necessary for you to contemplate in your evolution as a human being.

I saw it like a month ago at SXSW and I still can't get it out of my head. WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW. You have to see this whenever it becomes available. Can't wait to see it again!

Don't want to say too much, words can't really do it justice. It's a one of a kind in the truest sense. Great acting, great writing, really colorful movie. Keep your eyes peeled. Am thrilled to say I was able to see it at its premiere at SXSW!

The director said he was inspired by Bob Fosse and Mike Nichols, two filmmakers whose work I'm not all that familiar with (I know, shame on me), and I liked this movie enough to check out more of their movies.

Anyway, I loved this movie. Wish there were more like it. Definite 10 out of 10.

Words like "wild" and "madness" are cliché, but there's really no other way to describe American Animal. Just like Jimmy's (Matt D'Elia) more straight-laced roommate James struggles to voice his own concerns, ambitions, and feelings in the face of Jimmy's relentless energy; it's hard to describe the film as anything other than completely mad. Ultimately this is what made it so challenging at times, but also so engaging. This is no holds-barred madness that refuses to be channeled in a single vein, and the film jumps from one bizarre scene to the next; each a different manifestation of Jimmy's deranged psyche brought to life. Jimmy is Fight Club's Tyler Durden reinvented; half as violent and twice as zany, obsessed with Hollywood actors and costumes instead of Project Mayhem and underground boxing.

But like Tyler Durden, Jimmy fights what he perceives to be the conformist indoctrination of the masses with his own extreme doctrine and is mercilessly intolerant of his friends' more "normal" views. He leaps before he looks. He acts, then asks for forgiveness, or doesn't. The film drags and is at times overly dramatic, but the whole thing builds and builds until it spirals out of control. It offers some severe gut-checks amidst the chaos, offering clarity in the confusion, and it gives the film the uncompromising point it searches for.

American Animal was a very unique film. This piece pushes the boundaries on what we are familiar with seeing. In an almost Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas atmosphere, Writer/Director/Star Matt D'Alia takes you for a wild ride through anything that crosses his mind. Matt stars as Jimmy, the dying son of rich parents who lives with his best friend in a high rise apartment. This apartment ends up being the only environment Matt needs to give you a visual tour you won't forget. With a great use of framing, Matt visually shows you the character dynamics between the only four characters you see: Jimmy, his roommate James, Blonde Angela and Not Blonde Angela. The women end up being pawns that Jimmy (Matt) uses to drive home some points, and show the differences in their characters. James, played by Brenden Fletcher, wants to finally branch out of the imaginary playland their apartment is for them and make an attempt to affect the outside world. Jimmy is much more concerned with releasing the internal world that now has free reign over the external world. Where James begins to see their apartment as isolated and hindering, Jimmy sees it as the apex zone for the animal's desire to rule reality, the ultimate American dream. Having no worries, no needs that aren't filled, Jimmy decides to take his desires to the extreme, which are relatively simple and rather animalistic. In an explosive scene between James and Jimmy, Jimmy explains how incredible he feels his opportunity at life really is, considering all the men and animals that worked so hard for him to have this opportunity to express his pure self freely with no chains attached. In a very telling statement Jimmy(Matt) says "I am scared of nothing, I think that's why they are scared of me, they see I am not scared, and that scares them." Not afraid of being who you want to be, free expression of what you are, an animal. Just see what Jimmy decides to do while James is at work.