It's pretty incredible that this is Director Jeremiah Zagar's first feature, which he also co wrote. The movie is based on a novel and focuses on Jonah the youngest of three brothers growing up in a volatile family environment. We follow Jonah's escapism into magical realism as he tries to forget the harshness of his surroundings. The dialogue and acting from all is brilliant, especially from the three young boys.
Cinematographer Zak Mulligan shot most of it on film and cites Ken Loach and the documentary 'Street Wise' as big influences on the movie. The grainy effect of film captures the nostalgic feel of the narrative and helps the viewer get into the 1980s vibe.
Most of the themes centre around your general coming of age type tropes (Peer pressure, belonging, family dynamics etc) but the real strength of the film is putting the viewer into the headspace of Jonah. Making us live those slices of time and fantasies that he does. There is one scene in particular where the camera swings round to complete a reveal that practically left my jaw on the floor it is done so well.
Fans of films like 'Moonlight', 'The Florida Project', 'Mud, 'Beasts of the Southern Wild' and of Directors like Andrea Arnold might enjoy this one.
Jonah's a young boy, a bit different from his brothers, trying to make sense of the world.
Great film.
A poignant and poetic evocation of childhood
Less concerned with narrative beats and character arcs than with tone and impressionistic visual poetry, the film operates in a similar magical realist key as Benh Zeitlin's masterful Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012), whilst also calling to mind the Texas scenes of Terrence Malick's opus The Tree of Life (2011), especially in the whispery pronouncements of the voiceover narration. Mixing nostalgia, idealism, recrimination, anger, personal freedom, and the constant conflict between optimism and experience into a potent whole, whilst the narrative could be accused of being a little insubstantial, We the Animals is an effective and poignant evocation of the modulations of childhood.
For my complete review, please visit: https://boxd.it/JU4wx
Coming of ager is similar in style to The Florida Project but it contains themes that surface below the obvious. It's a good film, and has fine, naturalistic performances from the three leads.
Shout by GranolaVIP BlockedParent2019-03-20T18:32:01Z
I think one of the main reasons I didn't particularly enjoy this movie was that, in my country, it was branded as the "new Moonlight". And it definitely isn't. I was floored by how different those two movies were (and I blame homophobia a little for making people thinks those two movies are completely alike).
However, it is a very interesting movie, though probably not made for me. I graded it a 6 because I didn't truly enjoy it but in no way does it mean that it's a bad movie. Another person made a very good comment so I won't elaborate more.