Animal Review : Wild First Half – Mild Second Half

Animal fever spread across the world among movie lovers and general audiences alike. Being a movie by Arjun Reddy’s director and an intense trailer cut, Animal managed to pull the audience into a trance. Director Sandeep Reddy Vanga says the story is a father-son love story that is more than 200 minutes long but that will entertain in every frame. Ranbir Kapoor and Anil Kapoor appear as the son and father while Rashmika Mandanna, Bobby Deol, and others appear in crucial roles. The movie was released in theaters today. Let us walk into the review and know what the director has in store for us all. Review from a US premiere.

What Is It About?

Rann Vijay Singh Balbir (Ranbir Kapoor) adores his father Balbir Singh (Anil Kapoor), a business tycoon who never cares to spend time with his family. The aggressive Rann Vijay gets married to Geetanjali (Rashmika Mandanna) and leaves for the US after an argument with his father. Vijay returns after many years learning that there has been an attack on his father. Vijay takes the leashes of everything only to find who is behind the attack. Did Vijay find the secret enemy? The answer to this question is Anima

Performances

Animal emerges as the greatest performance of Ranbir Kapoor to date. Ranbir Kapoor lives in the character of Rann Vijay Singh Balbir. The narrative goes back and forth showing Ranbir in different ages. The man excels and shows the same aggression as needed in each look. 

Rashmika Mandanna plays a bold role in Animal. She did well in the character of Geethanjali. Anil Kapoor performed well for the role he was given but his full potential was not utilized. Bobby Deol steals the show with his wild looks and attitude. More scenes for him could have done a great deal in the second half. Shakti Kapoor, Prithvi, and others did well in their respective roles.  

Technicalities

Animal is a technically brilliant film. The visuals and presentation are on par with some of the greatest films made. The background score is excellent in the first half and second half the way Sandeep referenced a few songs in the background is great. There are a few signature shots and frames of Sandeep Reddy Vanga in Animal that we have seen in Arjun Reddy. A better screenplay and editing in the second half of Animal would have made the movie invincible. 

Thumbs Up

Ranbir Kapoor
Background Music
Bobby Deol Wild Look

Thumbs Down

Second Half Lag
S*x Conversations Overdone
More Violence Less Emotion

Analysis

Animal is all about a son who adores and worships his father and is willing to go to any extremes for him. The unending love of the son is visible, but the conflict behind his frustration is not established properly. The character of Ranbir is so dominating that there is no proper scene to establish the point of view of Anil Kapoor’s character.

The first half manages to keep the audience engaged for the most part. The narration goes tight with many happening sequences including the stunning action episodes. The sister-ragging episode is also the highlight. Ranbir and Rashmika’s romance in flight episodes is good.

The first half’s major highlight would be the Arjan Vailly action block but only until the axe fight sequence. The action parts with the war machine gun are well-made yet similar episodes are watched umpteen times by the Telugu audience, which might entice the Bollywood audience.

The second half has pacing issues and uneven screenplay. The highs we see in the first half are completely missing here. The conversations and events between Ranbir and Rashmika appear lengthy and repetitive at times. There were many raw visuals and conversations about s*x in the movie. Apart from violent visuals, the bold visuals, dirty jokes, and raw conversations often looked forced. Animal could have had a crisp second half and a thoroughly engaging movie on the whole if the editing was better. 

Ranbir’s character establishment is top-notch and one of the best characterizations on screen. The personality of Bobby Deol looks fierce and menacing, but the character is not very well written in fact ends up as a totally shallow one. A few more scenes for Bobby Deol could have shown his perspective. The climax fight gets interesting only with the confrontation of Ranbir and Bobby Deol.

The father and son episodes shown in the trailer are mostly the good ones in the film. With such a powerful camp, a man like Vijay Balbir unable to track down the rivals is not convincing. The plot contradicts itself when the son loves his father so much but leaves for the US for six years and returns only after the attack.

Overall, Animal is Ranbir’s show all over with a few exceptional episodes. His character takes over everything and everyone leaving other crucial characters impactless. It can be remembered as a violent film with outstanding presentation rather than a father-son emotional drama. Animal is having exceptional openings all over and it is believed to register giant numbers before the full run concludes. 

Bottom Line: Wild First Half – Mild Second Half

Rating: 2.75/5