It’s not often a movie offers up a new way of telling a story, American Animals provides a totally refreshing and rewarding angle to the classic heist movie. It also answers the question about what could happen to anyone who craves a life less ordinary. American Animals is not just ‘based on’ a true story, it is a true story and one you must see.
Thanks to Sundance Institute pro
Spencer Reinhard is a university student who craves a more than the average life, and his friend Warren Lipka is just the one to help him achieve it.
Bored with life Reinhard and Lipka plan on stealing a set of priceless books from the university library. Worth many many millions of dollars what starts as an idea for Reinhard soon becomes a reality he cannot escape even if he wanted to. As the time gets closer they realise they can’t pull it off alone, and so they enlist the help of two more friends Eric Borsuck and Chas Allen.
While the real life story is intriguing and entertaining in itself, what takes the movie to a whole new level is the dual story telling approach. The movie intersperses face to camera interviews with the real men, then switches back to four actors who play out their recall of events.
The cast. Thanks to Michael Kovac
The young cast includes one of my favourite up and coming actors Barry Koeghan (Killing of a Sacred Deer, Dunkirk). I had to google him after the movie to remember where he came from. The other actors were: Evan Peters (X Men Apocalypse), Jared Abrahamson (Travelers), and Blake Jenner (The Edge of Seventeen).
American Animals was an absolute joy and one I can’t stop talking about. As I googled Barry Koeghan I pondered …
- As the crime takes on a new level of drama you start pondering how you’re getting to see the real men? Are they in jail? Did they get away with it? I found myself scanning the background of their interviews to try and find clues as to where they were. I won’t spoil the surprise;
- It was fascinating to hear the differing eye witness account of events;
- Part movie, part documentary I’m sure we’ll see this approach repeated. In fact it’s a little reminiscent of Hamish and Andy’s True Stories series;
- Am so pleased to see the movie has won awards;
- Also good to know there are still new ways to tell a story.
For more information go to Luna Cinema.
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