The Animal Kingdom Reviews (original) (raw)
Summary In a world where mutations in human genetics cause people to transform into hybrid creatures, François (Roman Duris) does everything he can to save his wife, who is affected by this mysterious condition. As some of the creatures disappear into a nearby forest, François embarks with Emile (Paul Kircher), their 16-year-old son, on a quest ...
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Summary In a world where mutations in human genetics cause people to transform into hybrid creatures, François (Roman Duris) does everything he can to save his wife, who is affected by this mysterious condition. As some of the creatures disappear into a nearby forest, François embarks with Emile (Paul Kircher), their 16-year-old son, on a quest ...
The Animal Kingdom moves swiftly between its characters’ everyday problems and the story’s fantastical elements in a magical realist way that quickly captivates its viewer.
A light but meaty piece of magical-realism that threads the needle between Cronenbergian body horror and Miyazaki-like fantasy to create a modern parable that evokes any number of identifiable emergencies — deforestation, the AIDS epidemic, the global migration crisis and its attendant xenophobia, etc. — in the service of a story that refuses to be reduced into a clear metaphor for any one of them.
While The Animal Kingdom is far from perfect, it still delivers a crowd-pleasing story that can move and thrill in equal measure.
The inevitable North American remake will no doubt pump more technology into its iteration, but a more efficient, streamlined approach toward pace and editing wouldn’t have hurt this original and striking work.
The Animal Kingdom seems squeamish about going for the jugular in the way a proper genre movie would.
The Animal Kingdom is what an X-Men movie would look like if it doubled-down on its tolerance-for-outsiders metaphor and did away with any exciting superpowered spectacle.
Mr. Cailley is interested in the allegorical implications of his story, but not interested enough to pursue them very seriously.
A blockbuster-like fantasy drama about human beings mixed with animals due to a mutation that serves as an allegory about prejudice. The social commentary is very obvious, but several scenes make it stand out in terms of emotionality, especially when it focuses on the difficult relationship between a grieving father and son. Although the duration works against it, this coming-of-age leaves good impressions due to its technical achievements (CGI and makeup are great) and the humanistic direction the concept takes. A quiet yet harrowing scene near the end is an astonishing accomplishment in terms of visuals serving the narrative. P.S.: Adèle Exarchopouls is so wasted in this.
Production Company Nord-Ouest Films, StudioCanal, France 2 Cinéma, Artémis Productions, Canal+, Ciné+, France Télévisions, Cinécap 6, Palatine Étoile 20, Cinémage 17, Cinéaxe 4, Entourage Sofica, Indéfilms 11, Shelter Prod, Taxshelter. be, Tax Shelter du Gouvernement Fédéral Belge, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC), Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Département de la Gironde, Département du Lot-et-Garonne
Release Date Mar 15, 2024
Duration 2 h 8 m
Tagline All creatures crave freedom.
César Awards, France
• 5 Wins & 12 Nominations
Lumiere Awards, France
• 1 Win & 5 Nominations
DIGITAL CREATION GENIE AWARDS
• 3 Wins & 4 Nominations