Review of Animal (2014) by Jon C — 22 Jun 2014

Quick, fast and gets straight to where it needs to go.

The film obviously wastes no time getting to the carnivorous horror.

The characters are pretty detestable during the first 5 min but as soon as the creature starts picking them off they become better people to be concerned about.

The man from the opening who loses his wife is just an ass all the way through, he has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

But what works about this kind of monster-flick is that the creature is done all practical; all mechanics and makeup effects with NO CGI.

That's a relief even for a direct-to-TV movie.

Elizabeth Gillies, Keke Palmer and Jeremy Sumpter are among several popular faces acting outside their usual range.

It's a nice step away from the tween-based fare.

The movie gave me one good jolt, loads of gory scenes, and it reminded me of similar entries such as 'Feast' and 'The Descent'.

The whole survival ordeal lasts through the whole night and it never lets up until the next day.

There's also a spine-tingling reveal during the last shot.

With these people trapped in a cabin in the middle of the woods with no resources or to call for help their alliance is pretty shaky given the choices they have to make in order to come out alive.

'Animal' is truly vicious, violent, dark, and savage.

It's not a failed effort but a more palpable one.