What Do The Critics Say?

"Animal Kingdom is, by a mile, the finest piece of cinema to come out of Australia, or any other country, for that matter for a very long time indeed. Outstanding. 5 STARS." Ed Gibbs EMPIRE "Brimful of sterling performances ... powerful filmmaking on all fronts ... See this film." IGN.com, Patrick Kolan "Gripping, uncompromising... the best Australian film in a decade." FHM AUSTRALIA "I doubt we will see a better film in 2010." AINTITCOOL.COM "An unmissable film experience." Lisa Hensley HARPER'S BAZAAR "What ultimately assures Animal Kingdom of not merely greatness, but candidacy to classic status, is that it never loses its focus or relents. Everything that it puts in place it carries through, right to the final scene where you realise the choice that J has ultimately made, and where it has left him. Craig Mathieson SBS FILM

"The scariest thing about Animal Kingdom is how staggeringly good it is." Craig Mathieson SBS FILM "Stunning, compelling, a film that has to be seen." Ed Gibbs ROLLING STONE "...brooding, operatic crime story...immaculate." Kenneth Turan, LA TIMES "sublime performances." MOVIELINE.COM "powerful .... remarkable." THE INDEPENDENT "A finely tuned piece of pure heart-pounding suspense. Magnetic performances" GEEKTYRANT "Writer/director David Michôd achieves a remarkable intensity throughout. Animal Kingdom is the best crime film ever made in Australia and it's one of the best crime films full stop ." CINEMA AUTOPSY

The Inside Story The beasts of "Animal Kingdom" evolved over a nine year period and leapt from writer/director David Michôd's fascination with the colorful, criminal landscape of Melbourne, a city that rightly or wrongly is often depicted as the stately, grand dame of Australia. Originally from Sydney, Michôd spent several years living in Melbourne and started following various writings, including newspaper reports, as so many Melbournians do, about the local crime scene. "The thing that made me want to make a movie about this world has always been to comprehend how people live lives like these where the stakes are so high, where making mistakes can mean the difference between life or death or freedom and incarceration, where a whole level of society operates just below what we know as moral and correct." "I returned to Sydney and wrote the first draft of "Animal Kingdom", which was a great, rewarding experience. But nothing much from these earlier drafts ended up in the final script." Michôd spent the next eight years writing and working on other projects, but his underworld drama kept beckoning. "I wanted to make a sprawling, Australian crime story that was multi-layered," he explained, "with an ensemble cast that was representative of the way in which the criminal world filters through regular society and brushes against us constantly, even though we don't realise it. Frequently, I was advised that it was overly ambitious for a first feature, as it had multiple locations and characters, some of whom we?re not introduced to until half-way through the story, whereas other characters shine brightly for the first thirty pages then die. But I always wanted it to feel as though each part was coloured by particular characters, that in some way passed the baton to one another." Although crime exists in every Australian city, the fascination that Melbourne has for its criminals and its ability to turn them into celebrities, is unique. As Michôd says, "These people can literally go from being in newspapers and pictured outside courtrooms on the 6.00pm news, to being reality TV stars. That kind of thing doesn't happen in say, Sydney. That's not to say that Sydney doesn't have a thriving, or long-standing underworld, but it doesn't turn its criminals into darlings of the media." Very soon into writing the screenplay, 2007 AFI Award winner Michôd also made a decision about fictionalisation. "I wanted the thing to be fiction because I felt reluctant to engage in what now seems to be a whole culture of turning criminals into celebrities. I didn't want to do that." But Melbourne clearly was the best setting for the world of "Animal Kingdom". "I was also keen to film Melbourne in a way that it's rarely viewed, as the common image is of a picturesque city awash with Victorian architecture, lush gardens and trams. But it's actually a much bigger, scarier place: a large, sprawling, urban mess, which I love. I wanted to make a film that unlike, say, a Quentin Tarantino or Guy Ritchie crime movie, took itself seriously, and was set within a big, dark, nasty world, which was nevertheless still quite poetic and beautiful." Following a move to the US, Michôd's original producer, Bec Smith, a former colleague from his days at industry magazine Inside Film (IF), left the project in 2006. Enter Liz Watts, one of Australia's leading film producers. Watts agreed to be a mentor on a short film Michôd was making with Angie Fielder called "Crossbow", which was, in many ways, a calling card for "Animal Kingdom". "I hadn’t seen any of David’s work prior to this time," recalled Watts ("Walking on Water"), "and basically knew him as an editor of IF Magazine, although I was aware that he was working on a screenplay for a feature film." "But when I saw "Crossbow" in the edit suite, it absolutely blew me away. I thought it was a very original piece of filmmaking with a strong directorial voice. Following Bec's relocation to the US, we spoke about "Animal Kingdom" and the direction it was taking and David convinced me to come on-board. During that period David worked onanother four drafts, finessing the structure and building the moral nightmare that the central character of J finds himself trapped within. I just loved the richness of the characters and the fact that they felt both strong and real." On a simplistic level, "Animal Kingdom" follows the misadventures of J, a seventeen year old boy, who following the death of his mother, a heroin addict, goes to live with the Cody family: his deceptively sunny grandmother, Smurf, and her hardened criminal sons, Pope, Craig and Darren. But it's not long before J finds himself caught between family loyalties, and the police, who want him to testify against his uncles in a murder case involving two slain members of the force. "J is essentially our tour guide," Michôd explained. "I wanted the story to be about a particular epoch during which the criminals realise that their illegal pursuits are shifting in terms of their lucrativeness, which precipitates a crisis. They then commit this terrible crime and their world collapses. Relating these events via J was the perfect way in which to navigate their world, as I never wanted "Animal Kingdom" to feel as though it was a movie solely about a kid, but someone out of place in a world that is maybe going to really harm them." 2009 Gotham Award winner Guy Pearce ("The Hurt Locker") who plays Leckie, elaborates: "this film has a very particular style to it: it's about the potential energy rather than the kinetic, it's what's sitting there under the surface that really allows the audience to go; wow, what would this be like if I was in that situation? It's really fascinating." 2002 AFI Award winner Joel Edgerton ("The Secret Life of Us") who plays Baz, offered: "You are going to be as shocked as you are excited. It really places the audience very much there in with the kid, with J, and that's incredibly suspenseful." In researching the world of "Animal Kingdom", writer/director David Michôd and his production team, covered a lot of ground. "Authenticity was very important," Michôd acknowledges, "but I was also mindful that it was my feeling of authenticity that was most vital. I'm not one of those people who needs to ruthlessly research every single, little detail. But we did do our homework. We visited Melbourne's Assessment Prison, because although it's easy to write a scene that's set in such a place, when it comes to actually staging it, you need to have been there. We visited the Metropolitan Remand Centre and had a tour of how contact and non-contact visits work, and thereafter our production designer, Jo Ford, was able to build the prison set which looked exactly like the real thing. And that gave us confidence. So whenever we'd written something that was set in an unfamiliar environment: like the interrogation rooms at police stations; we would go visit them." "I thought of "Animal Kingdom" as my love letter to Melbourne," D.O.P. Adam Arkapaw ("The Last Supper") joked, "as we filmed everywhere from Bundoora to Altona and the CBD, to Ivanhoe and Brighton, and that was intentional because Melbourne has so much variety. David was passionate about wanting to encompass the whole city, from its quiet, leafy suburbs and cityscapes, to its stark, industrial side." "Animal Kingdom" was edited over sixteen weeks in Sydney with editor Luke Doolan. "The pace we wanted was a very slow burn, almost a Polanski type of pace." The film features an outstanding ensemble cast, from Australian acting icon, Jacki Weaver and international screen star, Guy Pearce, to seventeen year old James Frecheville who makes his big-screen debut as J. The film pivots on the J character, but at opposing ends of the moral spectrum there is on the one hand, Pope (Ben Mendelsohn) and on the other, Detective Senior Sergeant Leckie (Guy Pearce). Says Michôd, "I'd always written the character of Pope with Ben Mendelsohn in mind because I knew that Pope needed to be the charismatic alpha male of this particular family. The Leckie character was a different challenge because he's a quiet character in a sense, in that he's buttoned down in a way that so many working detectives are. And when Guy agreed to play the role of Leckie, we knew we'd struck a brilliant balance. Those two guys became the counterpoints on which to build the rest of the cast." However the search for a young actor to portray J proved immense, with over five hundred boys auditioning for the role. "As J is a pivotal character," Watts says, "we needed to cast somebody who would be able to hold his own with experienced, charismatic actors." "Whilst some of the others were very talented, they just didn't have the innate understanding as to how every line or sequence of lines, constitutes a beat in a scene," Michôd notes. "But James was able to master that without my input. It did take me a while to envisage him in the role, because he's a big, strapping, seventeen yearold sort of a man-child: but the more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea." Outwardly, Smurf is a bright, cheerful presence oozing maternal warmth, who darts between her big,brooding sons like a little ray of sunshine. Her 'boys': the quietly menacing Pope, volatile Craig and baby,Darren; are her life. She's the glue, or some would say toxic poison, that holds them together. AFI (1976) and Logie (1978) Awards winner Jacki Weaver, was the first attached to the project. "I didn't want Smurf to be a grizzled, old battle-axe. I wanted her to have Jacki's qualities, a kind of delightful, almost disingenuous naivety. She's very smart and delightful, yet disarmingly so." Weaver ("Picnic at Hanging Rock") relished the opportunity of portraying a character of Smurf's complexity. "Smurf is a sociopath and psychopath," she commented, "who had bred these three psychopath sons. She's all the more chilling because she appears to be quite normal: even sweet; with this immense affection for her boys. But sociopaths can be lovable one moment and monstrously cold and callous the next, which pretty much describes her." 1987 AFI Award winner Ben Mendelsohn ("The Year My Voice Broke") was cast as Andrew 'Pope' Cody. He says: "Pope's a guy whose heyday was maybe ten or fifteen years ago. He's a criminal who once upon a time could make money, but with the advent of technologies to thwart armed robberies and the rise of substance dealers, his world has been left behind." 2008 AFI Award winner Luke Ford ("The Black Balloon"), was cast as Darren Cody, the youngest and most passive of the three brothers. "I'm quite an emotional, instinctive person in real life and I really had to strip that away. I generally play characters that really express themselves. This character doesn't in some ways, and he's quite restrained. He's quite internalised. That was a difficulty but also a great challenge that I was drawn to." Eighteen year old Laura Wheelwright makes her big-screen debut in the film as Nicky, J's pretty, young girlfriend, whose tranquil family upbringing has ill-equipped her to deal with, or comprehend, the brutality of the Cody family. What's It All About?

Armed robber Pope Cody is in hiding, on the run from a gang of renegade detectives who want him dead. Business partner and best friend, Barry 'Baz' Brown, wants out of the game, recognising that their days of old-school banditry are all but over. Pope's younger brother, the speed-addicted and volatile Craig Cody, is making a fortune in the illicit substances trade: the true cash cow of the modern criminal fraternity; whilst the youngest Cody brother, Darren, naively navigates his way through this criminal world, the only world his family has ever known. And into this world arrives their nephew, Joshua 'J' Cody. J quickly comes to believe that he is a player in this world. He soon discovers, this world is far larger and more menacing than he could ever have imagined. J now realises that in order to survive he must workout how the game is played and determine his place in the Animal Kingdom.

The Verdict "It's almost unbelievable that they could make such a defining Australia film on a miserly budget of just five million dollars. The same film, made in Hollywood, would have easily commanded a budget of one hundred million dollars. Yet here we have a homegrown production that boasts a superb cast, excellent cinematography and an engrossing storyline. Don't expect a frenetic 'american style' crime film. This is a raw, gritty, pot-boiler of a film that will, with its final act, jolt you right out of your seat. The characters and those who play them are sensational. Audiences will eventually find Jackie Weaver has played them for a sucker with her powerful portrayal of matriach, Janine 'Smurf' Cody. Her family truly is the scum of the earth. There's nothing likeable about them at all. They are loyal only to themselves and their cause. When it comes to redeeming factors, they haven't any. They are dogs of the worse kind. If they were bugs, your first thought would be to squash them under your heel. But watching them disintegrate is fascinating. The two newcomers, James Frecheville and Laura Wheelwright give a terrific account of themselves. Frecheville as Joshua 'J' Cody is the central figure in the film and was a good choice for the role. Someone with real acting experience would have taken the edge, the rawness and ordinariness off his character and "Animal Kingdom", on all levels, doesn't need that! Exceptionally good. Highly watchable. 4 1/2 STARS." The Production Team

Director Screenplay Producer Exec producers Cinematography Film Editor Casting Production Design Art Direction Costume Design

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

David Michôd David Michôd Liz Watts Bec Smith & Vincent Sheehan Adam Arkapaw Luke Doolan McGregor Josephine Ford Janie Parker Cappi Ireland

Who Is Playing Who?

Guy Pearce Ben Mendelsohn Joel Edgerton Luke Ford Jacki Weaver Sullivan Stapleton James Frecheville Dan Wyllie Anthony Hayes Justin Rosniak Laura Wheelwright Mirrah Foulkes Susan Prior Clayton Jacobson Anna Lise Phillips Anthony Ahern

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Leckie Andrew 'Pope' Cody Barry Brown Darren Cody Janine Cody Craig Cody Joshua 'J' Cody Ezra White Det. Justin Norris Det. Randall Roache Nicky Henry Catherine Brown Alicia Henry Gus Emery Justine Hopper Armed robbery detective

Run Time 112 minutes Rated MA15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2010 - Madman Cinema - All Rights Reserved ©1999-2010 The Movie Pages & impact Internet Services. All Rights Reserved. Protected by Australian and International Copyright. Trademark Laws and Intellectual Property Rights apply.