Review of Animal Kingdom (2010) by Edward A — 14 Jul 2014

After witnessing David Michôd's latest film, The Rover (which I was fairly impressed with, to begin with), I decided to visit his debut feature-the one that received universal acclaim from all sides, the audience and critics, and put Michôd on the map as one of the newcoming filmmakers to most look forward to.

Animal Kingdom is a crime drama that centers around a family of unmitigated drug dealers and gangsters. There's Baz (Joel Edgerton) who appears to be the reasonable and practical friend, followed by the family itself: a creepily callous "Uncle Pope" (Ben Mendelsohn), a more reserved and seemingly-innocent/young Daren Cody (Luke Ford), and Craig Cody (Sullivan Stapleton) who's frantic in his demeanor and impatient in his methods. This family is headed by an apparently-benevolent and merciful mother named Janine (Jacki Weaver) who's actually diabolical and meticulous beneath that deceitful smile and glowing appearance, entirely bent on protecting the foundation of the Cody family at all costs. Finally, we have her grandson, Josh (James Frecheville), who's suddenly forced to live with these malefactors and endure the family's daily depraved activities after finding his mother OD'd on the couch and taken away.

After a loved one is brutally murdered, the family is caught in a horrific predicament and now unable to sustain the composure that once kept them from the eyes of the law-all hell breaks loose and friendships/relationships are ferociously put to the test. How can a human being know who to trust-even when it concern's one's own family members-in the heat of the moment and on the run from the police? Animal Kingdom delivers with raw emotion and an uncompromising, realistic portrait of true human nature...of the fear and desperation that inexorably consumes a soul once sin has been committed.

Thanks to the incredibly authentic performances boasted by a remarkable ensemble (that also includes Guy Pearce as the primary detective in the investigation), everything feels so real, and from there on, the sheer unpredictability of this tale sets in. Right from the start, a significant character is killed-a character who really was being gradually developed and one who you were only beginning to meet-and suspense, complemented by twists after twists, ensues immediately. The audience is tormented by verily tense interrogation scenes that only propel you to cringe as the suspect attempts to maneuver around dangerously pinning questions. We've seen plenty of these kind before but very few as convincing and marvelously-executed-the screenplay and acting exuding haunting verisimilitude. In addition, the narrative follows the lives of all fairly sensible and humanly smart individuals, often culminating in a clash of wits and grit and showcasing each character's individual and differential plan of resolving this utter mess.

In this day and age, after the release of innumerable crime thrillers, every other one seems to be generic and clichéd and the prior one simply okay, but this picture is that refreshing exception that proceeds unexpectedly with its every captivating minute. It carries a much faster pace than that of The Rover, as well as an intricately-set-up and unleashed plot of emotional and thematic depth. I was so drawn by it that its two-year-old age didn't stop me from putting a review out. Michôd's Animal Kingdom is one of those unfortunate gems that flew under the radar and missed any major awards buzz and box office success to officially cement its stature as one of the best movies of the decade so far.