Sundance Review: AMERICAN ANIMALS is a Unique Telling of a True Story of Four College Students Who Plan a Heist
American Animals is the outlandish docudrama about four college students from Kentucky (played by Barry Keoghan, Evan Peters, Blake Jenner, and Jared Abrahamson) who, in 2004, decided to rob the rare books collection at the local university. Driven by an overwhelming desire to be something more than ordinary, their plan quickly escalates and spins out of control. Before they know it, they're in way over their heads without even realizing it.
Director Bart Layton is no novice when it comes to documentaries. His best-known works, The Imposter and Locked Up Abroad are definitive works within the genre, and this film shows just what he can do when given creative liberty to blur the line between fact and fiction.
Combining interviews with the real people involved and dramatic (and maybe not completely accurate) re-creation of the actual event, American Animals is captivating from start to finish. The use of light-hearted banter makes you feel like you are right there hanging out with the guys as they plan the heist, but as their scheme becomes a reality, the humor and fun ebbs away as the severity of what they're doing and their obvious lack of skill sets in. Their plan is so bizarre, it includes them not only robbing the library in the middle of the day, but doing so dressed ridiculously as old men.
I loved the originality of this film. Sometimes, the actors interact with the real people they’re portraying, other times the characters’ lines overlap poetically with the interviews. The acting is so terrific, and the interviews are so well crafted, it makes the whole thing feel incredibly real without being preachy, like some documentaries tend to be. This one is definitely not to be missed.
