Animal (2018 film)

2018 Argentine film

Animal

Animal original poster

Directed by| Armando Bó II
Written by| Nicolas Giacobone
Produced by| Rebolucion and MyS Producción
Starring| Guillermo Francella
Carla Peterson
Cinematography| Javier Julia
Edited by| Pablo Barbieri
Music by| Pedro Oneto
Distributed by| Grupo Telefe
Buena Vista Internacional

Release date

* 24 May 2018 (2018-05-24)

Running time

| 113 minutes
Countries| Argentina
Spain
Language| Spanish
Budget| 1 000 000 USD
Box office| 1 955 255 USD[1]

Animal is a 2018 Argentine-Spanish drama thriller film directed by Armando Bó II, starring Guillermo Francella and Carla Peterson.[2][3] Animal was partially funded by Argentina's National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts (INCAA).[4]

## Plot

[edit]

Antonio Decoud, a family man and manager of a meat processing plant, lives a wealthy life in an upper-class neighborhood in Mar del Plata. His polite lifestyle is shaken by an unexpected illness. Decoud will be forced to fight on unknown ground in order to find an organ donor. Meanwhile, Elías Montero and his pregnant wife Lucy Villar, a homeless couple, see an opportuniy to change their lives by extorting money from Decoud.

## Cast

[edit]

* Guillermo Francella... Antonio Decoud
* Carla Peterson... Susana Decoud
* Federico Salles... Elías Montero
* Mercedes De Santis... Lucy Villar
* Gloria Carrá... Josefina Hertz
* Marcelo Subiotto... Gabriel Hertz
* Majo Chicar... Linda Decoud
* Joaquín Flammini... Tomás Decoud

## Reception

[edit]

Ezequiel Boetti from Otros Cines says that Bo made an essay on cruelty, selfishness, contempt and class conflict.[3] Ambito Financiero's Paraná Sendrós praises Francella's characterization of Decoud, and describes the movie as a satire on the fragile nature of relationships and fortune.[5] Gaspar Zimerman from Clarín compares Animal with Cape Fear, as both films are "fictional experiments" that confront a scared bourgeois with an out-of-control underclass.[6] Tobias Dunschen from Critique Film observes the lack of a dramatic counterweight to the flashy treatment of Decoud's frenzied search for a life-saving organ.[7] The Spanish critic Arantxa Acosta, from La Realidad no Existe, called the film "terrifying" because it inspires empathy for the two antagonists, Decoud and Montero, no matter how low they can fall.[8]

## Accolades

[edit]

Animal competed[9] in the following film festivals:

* Chicago International Film Festival
* Busan International Film Festival
* Fajr Film Festival
* Le Roche-sur-Yon Festival[7]
* Sitges Film Festival

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Box office "Animal"". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
2. ^ Clarín.com (2018-03-29). "El trailer de 'Animal', la nueva película de Armando Bo con Guillermo Francella". Clarín (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-12-31.
3. ^ a b Boetti, Ezequiel (22 May 2018). "Crítica de "Animal", de Armando Bo, con Guillermo Francella y Carla Peterson". otroscines.com (in Spanish).
4. ^ "Animal". Cineuropa. Retrieved 2024-01-18.
5. ^ Sendrós, Paraná (25 May 2018). "Francella, en otra admirable labor". www.ambito.com. Retrieved 2023-01-08.
6. ^ "Crítica de "Animal": Nada peor que un burgués asustado". www.clarin.com. Retrieved 2023-01-09.
7. ^ a b Dunschen, Tobias (2018-10-17). "La Roche-sur-Yon 2018 : Animal (Armando Bo)". Critique Film (in French). Retrieved 2023-01-08.
8. ^ Acosta, Arantxa (2018-10-11). "Sitges 2018". La Realidad No Existe (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-01-08.
9. ^ "Animal (2018) Awards & Festivals". mubi.com. Retrieved 2023-01-08.

## External links

[edit]

* Animal at IMDb
* Bo, Armando (2018-05-24), Animal (Drama, Thriller) (in Spanish), Bowfinger International Pictures, Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), MyS Producción, retrieved 2022-12-31
* "Ficha técnica, trailer, imágenes, noticias y más información de la película Animal". cinenacional.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-01-07.