Animal Review: Most violent action drama on father-son bond I have ever seen
Animal Movie Rating: 3.5 Stars
Finally watched Animal movie in Cinemas. Let’s focus on the complete details, story, positive/negatives and at last my personal view on this movie.
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Rashmika Mandanna and Tripti Dimri
Director: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Release Date: 1st December 2023 in Cinemas
Story: Movie begins when young Ranvijay (Ahmad Ibn Umar) leave class mid-day so that he could be at home to celebrate his father Balbir Singh’s (Anil Kapoor) birthday. Even if that meant getting punished by the teacher for disturbing the lecture. He adores his father extremely, but the same love isn’t reciprocated from the other side as Balbir Singh is too occupied with his business empire.
Ranvijay (Ranbir Kapoor) grows into a short-tempered yet extremely protective youth who can very casually fire guns in college and threaten boys for ragging his elder sister Roop (Saloni Batra). After this incident, Balbir sends him off to boarding school.
When he back in India falls in love with Geetanjali (Rashmika Mandanna). Due to unwanted incident, he moved back to US with her. Over the years, his rage snowballs beyond measure. When Balbir gets attacked by unknown assassins, the beast within him awakens for a bloodbath. Who is behind Balbir and how fare Ranvijay will go to save his father is all about this movie.
Positives
1. Performances
2. Background Music
3. Cinematography
4. Climax
5. Direction
Negatives
1. Length
2. 2nd half
3. Story
Durgesh Tiwary’s View: When I watched the trailer of this film planned to watch this movie in cinema on release date as loved the trailer and liked previous movies of actor and director.
It revolves around the complex relationship of a business magnate Balbir Singh and his son Ranvijay Singh. After tragedy befalls Balbir, Ranvijay sets out to exact vengeance against his rival Abrar Haque and pledges to never leave his family, leading to a gruesome gang war.
Animal first half of the film is highly engrossing. Despite a lengthy runtime, the first hour manages to hook us. Be it the character developments, staging of action sequences, and high moments, everything worked pretty well. The interval sequence is where the film reaches its peak. It is superbly shot, and the terrific background score by Harshavardhan Rameshwar lifts the spirits up. Action, background score and music work well with the mood of the film. What works the most however is Ranbir Kapoor’s raw sex appeal and unmatched intensity. You find yourself trapped in his troubled mind as his blood-soaked eyes seethe with rage. His ability to become the character he plays shocks, stuns, and draws you in each frame. It is 3 hours and 21 minutes full of violence, gunshots, bloodshed and sometimes even gore. Brilliantly choreographed action pieces are backed with a rousing background score that can pump up one’s adrenaline. Bullets are fired every now and then, but it keeps getting better.
The film travels between various timelines. From the son’s childhood to youth, marriage, children and avenging the attack on Balbir, the transitions are smooth and layered. In the age of social media, when the attention span is limited, Sandeep leaps and makes a longer film. This decision works largely as the director almost ties every loose end, leaving a scope for an interesting surprise. A parent-child relationship is undeniably the purest of all. The love is unconditional with a sense of belonging and protectiveness. But when protectiveness turns into possessiveness, is the relationship still healthy? Almost two decades ago, Karan Johar directed a film titled Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham with the core being, “It’s all about loving your parents.” Now, Sandeep Reddy Vanga brings a dark tale of “It’s all loving your papa,” in Animal.
On the flipside, the unending love of the son is visible, but the conflict behind his frustration is not established properly. It has a bunch of twists and turns but some of them are predictable. With the execution being on point, predictability hardly becomes a bothering factor. The pace slackens in the second half and unnecessary subplots does add anything to the movie. Length is the biggest issue of this film and easily half an hour could have been trimmed by avoiding unnecessary scenes. Story has nothing new and its typical family drama fighting for money. Bobby Deol’s is underdeveloped, and hence, the face-off in the pre-climax lacks the punch. Too much usage of English might cause irritation at times. Also, the movie becomes predictable after a point. Apart from violent visuals, the bold visuals, dirty jokes, and raw conversations often looked forced.
Overall, movie is intense and dark action drama on father-son boding. The first half has universally appealing content, but the tonal shifts in the second half might not be liked by all. The bold content and excessive violence might cause a stir among a few. It has its highs and lows and goods and bads, and still entertaining thoroughly. It is Ranbir’s show all over with a few exceptional episodes. It can be remembered as a violent film with outstanding presentation rather than a father-son emotional drama. My view on this movie Recommended without family.
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