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Why so much hype?

Must See Movie...

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Absolutely loved this movie. So glad I gave it a go, I had checked it on IMDB few times before seeing it and yep, great movie.Love the style. Really really enjoyed it.Thanks very much Mr Director and all those involved. Really awesome acting throughout.

The heist genre is one that's been done to death, but with American Animals, filmmaker Bart Layton manages to pull off something wholly unique. Best known as the director behind the wildly entertaining documentary The Imposter, Layton brings his non-fiction background with him to his first narrative feature film, interlacing the movie's fictional portrayal of events with interviews with the real-life subjects. The effect is engaging, offering a self-reflection not often seen in crime films, and while the movie ends up hollow in some spots, the cast is terrific and Layton announces himself as a filmmaker to watch.When American Animals begins, text appears on the screen stating "This Is Not Based on a True Story," but after a few seconds the "Not Based on" drops out, and we're left with "This Is a True Story." The film chronicles the real-life heist of precious rare books from Transylvania University in 2004 Kentucky, pulled off by a quartet of mostly well-off college students. The central mastermind duo behind the heist is Spencer (Barry Keoghan), a talented young art student, and his adrenaline-fueled troublemaking best friend Warren (Evan Peters). First pitched as something of a joke, the two begin to meticulously plan a heist of a couple of rare books kept in a secure library on the Transylvania University campus. Spencer is spurred by the notion that all great artists had to endure some kind of hardship to become great, and he's lived a perfectly nice family life. Warren, meanwhile, is a bit of a free spirit, spurred to act mostly out of the desire to see if they could actually pull this off.From the get-go, Layton establishes a slick framing device that sets this movie apart. Keoghan-who had a tremendous 2017 with breakout turns in Dunkirk and The Killing of a Sacred Deer-may start a sentence as Spencer, but the camera will then swiftly move right to reveal the real Spencer, finishing the character's sentence. All of the major players involved in the real-life heist show up as part of these interviews, and it's kind of like I, Tonya if the framing interviews were the real people. American Animals uses this device to address the idea that one individual's recollection of events may be completely different than another's, but more importantly it adds a layer of self-reflexivity that's much welcomed.Indeed, the biggest turnoff of American Animals is we don't really understand why these idiot college students did what they did. It was a flawed plan from the get-go, they weren't particularly hurting for money, and one of them came from a supremely wealthy family. So it's hard to get invested in the planning of the heist-which takes up the bulk of the film-when you don't really care if these guys succeed or not. It's here where the interviews play the most crucial role, as the real-life counterparts in hindsight provide perspective regarding just how idiotic and harmful this whole pie-in-the-sky idea really was.

American Animals took me by surprise. I wasn't familiar with the true back-story about the events depicted in the film. I can accept it's a film and there may be deviations from the actual events at times. That said the movie feels like a very welcome blend of a documentary and a heist movie. While it's no action blockbuster it reaches a fine level of entertainment by well placed actual interviews with the real perpetrators and a fantastic sense of humor. It's still a black atmosphere as a level headed person watching just wants to shake the main characters and say "wake-up". The idea is so stupid, but it gets the point that within a person who is fairly intelligent, yet bored, there's a need for some kind of excitement. Most folks get involved with less benign ways of course. Here things go toward the unthinkable, at least in logical terms. This is the hook. The movie weaves the decent of these smart kids fantasies slowly becoming reality. It builds tension, and all without the usual Hollywood heist bombast. It's really sad, but since you see it as a voyeur it's safe and engaging. I do like heist flicks and I do feel Hollywood has actually ruined the genre more than ran with it. This is a film that gets so much across about the angst and unsavory elements it's actually a refreshing take on the genre. Plus it tells an interesting true crime story and as such still should reach a broad audience. I give the writers, director, and the actors kudos for stealing back the heist genre and doing with originality and aplomb. In the end you really feel sad for the mis-guided actions of four young men and the aftermath that will always remain with the librarian victim and the families who received such a shock.

Documentarian/Producer and Director/Writer here, British born Bart Layton ("Locked Up Abroad" TV) has gathered an outstanding ensemble of actors (Even Peters "POSE," Barry Keoghan " Dunkirk," Blake Jenner " Edge of Seventeen," Jared Abrahamsson "Travelers" TV, Ann Dowd "Hereditary") who decided to up their boring and disenfranchised lives by stealing historical and financially strong books from their local Lexington KY University. Together, they are a train wreck waiting to happen, and one you can't look away from. Layton does an amazing job intertwining the story leading up to and through the heist, with actual interviews with the four (now grown men) who lived the experience first hand. By presenting all versions of the expereince, the audience becomes vested in the presentation. Unfortunately, Librarian Betty Jean (BJ) Gooch must bare the burden of being in the boys way, yet the always excellent Ann Dowd is up for the interaction. Score by Anne Nikitin helps establish the sentiment of the film and the pending action. Cinematography by Ole Bratt Kirkland further establish the community environment and the trapped feel the boys are dealing with, and the films Editing team (Nick Fenton, Chris Gill, Julian Hart) brings it all together into one exciting package. To Layton and the Editing teams credit, you won't be able to breath during the heist scene. Make sure to stick around for the credits, as musician Sixto Rodriguez ("Searching for Sugar Man" 2012) performs the final credit score. Funny thing, his name is nowhere to be found in the credits. "American Animals" is an Indie film that could easily be recognized across the board come Awards time.