Review of American Animal (2011) by Eric W — 14 May 2012

American Animal was a frantic and bizarre experience. It was initially almost too bizarre, even off-putting, but at the same time it made me want to keep watching just to see what happened next. At first Matt D'elia seems like a one-trick pony, oddball for the sake of oddball, but as the film progresses so does the depth of D'elia's character as he provides the methods to his madness.

The film has a very distinct atmosphere, and with only four characters and the single location of Jimmy and Jake's apartment complex, D'elia masters the space and it never feels contrived or claustrophobic. The apartment is functional, organic, and bursting with life - often simply due to the D'elia's possessed energy - and it creates a very believable and very unique space that distances itself from the "real world" that Jimmy wants nothing to do with. D'elia has created a unique and ferocious world that reeks of originality and never seems forced or un-real, and he does so without mercy or compromise.

Drug-fueled fantasies concocted by the mind of D'elia are somewhat reminiscent of Fear and Loathing, and the only two other characters, two girls named Angela and Angela, add an interesting dimension to the film. One of the girls is attracted to Jimmy in a Manson-family kind of way, seemingly entranced by his wild ways. The film has its humps, but once you're snared in the wild-world D'elia has created it's hard to look away, and its force is undeniable.