An in-depth review of Bollywood’s latest and record-breaking movie, “Animal.”
In his latest venture, “Animal,” Writer-Director Sandeep Reddy Vanga returns to the big screen after four years, following the critical backlash and controversies surrounding his films “Arjun Reddy” and “Kabir Singh.” However, the anticipation for any improvement is met with disappointment in this three-and-a-half-hour spectacle of unnecessary misogyny, bloodshed, and vulgarity.
Ranbir Kapoor plays the role of Ranvijay Singh, the devoted son of the affluent steel magnate Balbir Singh (played by Anil Kapoor). Ranvijay’s deep admiration for his father reaches an unsettling level when Balbir sustains severe injuries as a result of an assassination attempt. In order to protect his father, Ranvijay experiences a serious metamorphosis and shifts his entire focus, returning to India with his wife and kids from the United States. The narrative unfolds as Ranvijay, driven by the need to protect his father, mercilessly eliminates anyone he perceives a threat. In the process, he destroys his relationship with those dear to him.
At least that is what the movie is marketed to be about. However, the whole revenge ploy falls short due to the underdeveloped father-son relationship (or any relationship for that matter) and lack of character depth. The movie jumps erratically between time periods and locations with no transition or explanation. While the movie spans Ranvijay’s life, his motivations and decisions remain unclear. This can be attributed to bad writing, lack of dialogues, or a combination of both.
You trained me well, Papa
-Ranvijay (main protagonist)
Ranvijay’s violent tendencies, left unexplained throughout the film, make him an unbearable character to watch. Scenes intended to showcase his protective instincts and love for his family devolve into displays of power (aka he’s rich) and violence. For example, in high school he takes a gun to his sister’s college to threaten those bullying his sisters and no one bats an eye. He also puts four guys in the hospital by running them over or beating them up all in the name of protecting his sister and there is no police action.
Throughout the movie, Ranvijay’s decisions lack moral grounding or rational thought. Operating with a “I could so I did” mentality, he emerges as a one-dimensional character devoid of complexity. His approach to convincing his wife for marriage is to resort to asserting his suitability based on the archaic notion of men as hunters and providers. His compliments, such as deeming his wife’s hips “good for child-bearing,” only further highlight the film’s adherence to regressive stereotypes. He also forbids his sister from finding a man claiming that only he has the mental capacity to find a “fitting” man for his sister. His chauvinistic dialogues and actions, meant to portray him as a protector, serve only to perpetuate harmful stereotypes.
The primary flaw within the movie lies in the underdevelopment of humanizing plotlines for the protagonist, emphasizing explicit content over character depth. Excessive screen time dedicated to sex and violence overshadows the central theme of a son’s unwavering commitment to protect his father. The inclusion of sensitive elements, such as martial rape scene and threats of physical violence against women, serves no purpose except to showcase the masculinity of the protagonists. Although this movie had the potential to be Bollywood’s play on The Godfather, it fails spectacularly.
Promising unprecedented violence in Bollywood, the movie introduces an anti-hero protagonist with the expectation that the audience can’t help but feel bad for them. This attempt fails as the people leaving the theater called the movie “headache-inducing” and express no feelings of empathy towards the protagonist.
Amidst the disappointment, the movie manages to salvage some merit through its well-crafted action sequences, the depiction of revenge, beautiful visuals, and emotionally resonant songs (ironically about relationships). However, these redeeming qualities struggle to overshadow the overall disarray and missed opportunities that prevent “Animal” from reaching its true potential.
Animal playing in Cinemas now.