American Animals (2018) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written August 29th, 2018*

Going into this I wasn't sure what to expect, I'd not seen a single trailer for it and I had no idea what the plot was. Literally, the only information I had was that Evan Peters was in it and there was a lot of positive buzz, which is sometimes the best way to go into something. I was so pleasantly surprised when I started to realise this was going to be a heist film. Sadly though, while this is a decent enough time, I was a bit disappointed. 

American Animals is based on a true story of 4 students who decide to rob the university's library of their rarest books. There is an odd structure to the film that really disrupts the pacing. It constantly cuts back to real interviews with the actual people from the events, giving it a Netflix'ish true crime feel, but it never truly meshes well, making these scenes feel more distracting than insightful.

The best stuff here is easily the characters struggling with their real lives and their repercussions and anxiety about the heist. There's a big deal made about having to take out the elderly woman overseeing the books, which all of the team are uneasy about, despite the constant claims that no one will get hurt. It's an interesting piece of reflection and morality that I wish the film explored more, it spends a lot of time with it, but it really could have gone deeper.

Of the 4 students doing the heist, the only 2 that get real depth are Evan Peters and Barry Keoghan. Peters character being the rebellious one who is only doing his scholarship to please his family. In all honesty, Peters gives a rather excellent performance and by far the best I've seen from him. He's an actor with so much potential, but his career is mostly wasted in that tacky horror show American Horror Story, this guy needs to break out into real films pronto. Keoghan is also decent, not as strong as he was in The Killing of a Sacred Deer, but he's fine. All the other characters feel like an afterthought. 


The heist itself is mostly gripping and tense and things go worse and worse for the characters, despite the small scale of the crime. There is a lot of build up to the heist and I appreciate that, I just wish I had more fun with this, it was just lacking in something and I just can't put my finger on it. I think I might enjoy this more on a rewatch, but for now, American Animals is just a merely decent crime thriller.

6/10 Dans

American Animals is out September 7th in cinemas in the UK

Watch the trailer below:

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