Animal Kingdom (2010)
Directed by David Michôd
Joshua “J” is taken in by his extended family after his mother dies of an overdose. The clan, ruled by J’s scheming grandmother, is heavily involved in criminal activities, and J is soon indoctrinated into their way of life. But J is given a chance to take another path when a cop seeks to help him.
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3 films that influenced Animal Kingdom
What critics say influenced Animal Kingdom
Like a claustrophobic "The Godfather" or an unvarnished "GoodFellas," "Animal Kingdom," the gritty debut film by writer-director David Michôd, is about family, loyalty and vengeance.
There’s a familiarity about this material, pitching itself as it does against the themes of The Godfather and Heat, but writer-director David Michôd proves specific indeed about this particular intersection of criminality and domesticity.
Played with great energy by Sullivan Stapleton, cocaine-loving Craig is reminiscent of James Caan's Sonny in The Godfather – handsome, impulsive, doomed.
Any movie about a crime family is destined to echo previous entries in the genre, from The Godfather to The Sopranos.
Animal Kingdom also shares a trans-Pacific vibe with Michel Mann's 1981 Thief, another study of criminal mentality from the inside.
This attracts the notice of a possibly honest detective, Leckie (L.A. Confidential's Guy Pearce, in a crucial supporting role), who hopes to persuade J to give state's evidence against his uncles.