Film: Animal Kingdom
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 11th July 2011
Distributor: Optimum
Certificate: 15
Running time: 108 mins
Director: David Michôd
Starring: James Frecheville, Bryce Lindemann, Paul Smits, Jacki Weaver, Joel Edgerton
Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Australia
Language: English
Review by: Rob Markham
Gangster movies. Just when you think they’ve died out, they seem to sprout again like weeds. From classic, noirish Shakespearean stories of betrayal and lust through to the slapstick caricature of more recent British gangster flicks, it seems there are few places left for this genre to go and one wonders if it has run its course. David Michôd’s Animal Kingdom, based on actual events in Melbourne in 1988, offers us a worm’s-eye view of suburban crime, with surprising, and critically acclaimed results.
After the death of his mother from a heroin overdose, Josh goes to live with his Grandmother, Janine, the matriarch of a notorious Melbourne crime family. Josh’s uncles - Pope, Craig and Darren - and family friend Baz take Josh under their wing and he becomes embroiled in their misdeeds.
As armed robbery is on the wane, and the volatile Armed Robbery Squad are increasingly unpredictable and vindictive, the family begins to question the future, and to move into other areas for their income, such as drug dealing and the stock market.
When one of the gang is murdered, paranoia and fear spreads throughout the family, and, as the newcomer, Josh becomes an object of suspicion.
Caught between his family and the law, Josh must learn the basic, animal rules of survival if he is to survive in a world he is not equipped to deal with…
Fear is the overriding theme throughout Animal Kingdom. Every character is touched by it at some point. Whether they are living in it, or causing it in others, fear permeates every scene and every line of dialogue in David Michôd’s masterful tale of crime and family, which is one of the grittiest thrillers in recent years.
Told from the point-of-view of Josh, we are straight away thrown into a world we do not understand, and one in which nothing is what it seems and everything should be suspected and questioned. The opening scene sees Josh, apparently bored, watching Deal Or No Deal on television while his mother lies unconscious next to him. This could easily be a scene of bored youth in a disaffected time, but, within seconds, we learn that his mother has just overdosed on heroin, and seconds later, we find out that she is dead. We learn little of Josh, his background or his upbringing, and are instead thrown, shell-shocked, into the world of the Cody crime family and their oppressive and dangerous matriarch, Janine.
First appearing as a saviour for Josh, we soon learn Janine is as cold and calculating as any figurehead of any crime organization. Underneath her warm smile and demand for kisses in public is the same cold nature that drove Michael Corleone or Tony Soprano, and the behaviour of her sons reflects perfectly what it must have been like to be raised by such a matriarch. Pope is on the run from the police, Craig is heavily into drugs (dealing and using), while Darren, possibly confused about his sexuality, resorts to sitting in the shadows and using marijuana to cope. This is dysfunction at its finest and each actor takes to their role perfectly, showing the volatile nature of crime and the strain it puts on families, especially when it’s all they know.
Michôd does a remarkable job of making sure the tension never lets up throughout by ensuring a constant atmosphere of fear and paranoia that is aided by the superb performances. As Pope, Ben Mendlesohn is terrifying, channeling frustration and anger to painfully restrained levels and creating a sociopath of epic proportions. By turns afraid of his lack of patriarchal power in the family, and angry at almost everything, the character provides one of the most effective screen villains seen for some time. As matriarch, Janine ‘Smurf’ Cody, Jacki Weaver is equally scary, peeling away layers of niceties to reveal a cold and hard crime boss who will do whatever it takes to survive. Added to this, Joel Edgerton, Luke Ford and Sullivan Stapleton as the family/gang members portray testosterone soaked, fearful masculinity to terrific effect, transcending stereotypes and avoiding caricature. In fact, each character, in reference to the title, portrays animal-like behaviour perfectly capturing the essence of their character. Baz is bear-like and strong, Craig like a caged wild cat, Pope is cold, reptilian and untrustworthy, and Janine is the Black Widow, deadly and calculating.
At first glance, it seems that James Frecheville is a little uncomfortable in the central role of Josh, the young cub, but his lack of charisma, intelligence and emotion serves to keep the audience at a distance, ensuring we observe the horrific events unfold rather than become complicit in them. It is through his eyes that we see the world, and we are squarely on his level in terms of our familiarity and comfort with it. When called upon to portray strong emotion, he does an effective job, and the return to his dispassionate look at the end of the film is as horrifying as it is inevitable.
The title reflects the way these characters live, and the laws they operate by in their own world of armed robberies and drug dealing. Favouring interiors and claustrophobia over the open spaces Australia has in abundance, Michôd nevertheless shoots the action like a wildlife documentary, distancing us from the action and the characters, but never flinching from the minutiae. Movements within scenes, especially prevalent in the family home, are deliberate, brimming with restrained energy as each character fights against the perceived imprisonment their life has caused. It’s engrossing to watch, and every time the family is together, the tension is palpable.
Michôd’s use of slow motion seems to be an attempt to wring emotion and gravity out of scenes that are already heavily populated with both, and, at these times, it can feel a little melodramatic, but overall this is a powerful and effective film, superbly acted and written, and one which deserves high standing in the genre. His use of colour, or lack of it, gives the film a look of cold, hard reality, but not one that is instantly recognizable, increasing the gap between the characters and the audience. Likewise, the lack of gangster cliché set-pieces, such as actual armed robbery (glimpsed only in beautifully grainy stills over the opening credits), and the swift but brutally restrained violence adds to the sense that what we are seeing is not something we are supposed to immerse ourselves in or identify with, but something we should observe and learn from.
Strong performances and outstanding direction make Animal Kingdom a must for fans of the genre, but there is more to it than the standard formula. Michôd has crafted an effective look at the destructive nature of crime and the toll it takes on families, showing us a world where basic laws of survival rule and only the strong survive. Taut and gripping, it is a standout entry in a crowded genre and a welcome relief from the usual clichés. RM
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