Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Cast: Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, Spencer Reinhard, Warren Lipka, Eric Borsuk, Chas Allen, Betty Jean Gooch, Ann Dowd, Laura Grice, Udo Kier, Fedor Steer, Jack Landry, Wayne Duvall, Whitney Goin, Gary Basaraba, Robert C. Treveiler, Jane McNeill, Dorothy Reynolds, Maggie Lacey.
The overall problem with most cinematic experiences is that with some certain emotions, the truth of understanding them, even seeing them portrayed, is as likely as receiving an apologetic face from a pet cat after it has done its business in the wrong place; some reactions, some sentiments are impossible to replicate, even in the hands of a master actor.
Of all emotions to capture for an audience to try and feel any connection with, is shame, we have all felt it at some point in our lives and yet the feeling of the deepest regret is one that never comes across in film, perhaps the exposed heart and soul cannot cope with the idea of disgrace, of the humiliation required to be not be seen as the reckless, guilty embarrassment to the family and friends who raised you to be different.
If shame is impossible to portray for an actor, then the next best thing is the capturing and framing of real dishonour in the face of those who committed the act in the first place, the ones to whom the latest film is about, and in that respect the direction and production used in American Animals is about the finest example of such facial truth. Whilst we should never laud the behaviour that led to the conflicting emotion in the first place, at least by using the four men who attempted to steal the rare books as part of the narrative, we can truly witness the reality of shame.
Like all good heists there is always a plan, it is usually conceived out of vengeance, greed or even just grandstanding, the prospect of pulling such a daring robbery off can filter through even the most innocent of minds, the flight of fancy that comes hand in hand with boredom, or possession. What American Animals shows rather well, is that the facility to feel shame is often born out of an initial spark, it is a game gone awry, a feeling that any time somebody could have put their hands up, laughed and said that this is stupid, shame is the ultimate and final act of an individual or group that has been caught going too far, allowing the plan to spiral out of control and knowing they have hurt someone, even unintentionally, in the process of their game.
A true story is one that is hard to ignore, the sense of being caught up in the moment is an exhilarating pulse that is almost impossible to shake off and the interplay between fact and the fictional is a tale that is weaved between the two extremes with careful measure, blurring and melting the two seamlessly. It is one that makes American Animals a surprising hit, a film that captures the desire of the perfect robbery and the consequences with absolute perfection.
Ian D. Hall