Tara's Indie Pick Flicks

SepTue 2010 Filed in: Tara's Indie Pick Flicks

Animal Kingdom

Directed by: David Michod
Starring: James Frecheville, Ben Mendelsohn, Joel Edgerton, Luke Fork, Jackie Weaver, Sullivan Stapleton and Guy Pearce
Now playing: Landmark Sunshine Cinema - 143 East Houston Street, New York, NY

When his mother dies from an overdose, seventeen-year-old Josh Cody (Frecheville) has no one to turn to except for his estranged grandmother, Janine (Weaver). Nicknamed “Smurf” because of her tiny size and affection for the color blue, she heads a household of armed robbers, lead by Baz Brown (Edgerton) and her eldest son, Pope (Mendelsohn), who is currently hiding from the law in a motel. Rounding out the crew are her two younger sons, Craig (Stapleton) and Darren (Ford). As Josh notes in the beginning narration, a life of crime is rife with tension, and things slowly start to unravel for the crew. Happily married with a young baby, Baz is looking towards the future and life less dangerous. Craig deals drugs on the side and has fallen into addiction. Pope is prone to fits of violence and things go from bad to worse when he comes out of hiding to join his family. Josh becomes embroiled in a world of violence, paranoia and fear that threatens his own existence.

This movie is awesome. As a matter of fact, I think it might be the best movie I’ve seen all year. Weaver is wonderful as the spunky, overly affectionate and slightly evil matriarch. Animal Kingdom is the first film for Frecheville, who gives an amazing performance. I have to admit, at first I was a little put off by his stoic-because-I-have-to-be performance. After all, I have reviewed a number of films where the protagonist is a teenager forced into a bad situation and is emotionally shut off (Fish Tank, Winter’s Bone). I was afraid that Frecheville’s performance would seem tired. But when Josh finally becomes overwhelmed by the world he’s in and breaks down, it’s incredibly moving. Director Michod has created a beautifully tragic world that is as impossible to look away from and it is repulsive. It’s true, Animal Kingdom is not the feel-good movie of the year, but it is unbelievably great.