For all of his life, Vijay (Ranbir Kapoor) has wanted his rich father (Anil Kapoor) to love and care for him. When his dad is attacked, Vijay becomes violent and obsessed. His only goal is to get payback and find the people who plotted against him. Think of Godfather on steroids, without any of the psychological strain.
Look over: The main character of the movie says that blood is thicker than water. No matter how messed up the relationships are, family safety and togetherness are sacred. People even tell us that broken is worse than unstable.
With a 3 hour and 21 minute length full of extreme violence, testosterone, and overt sexism against women, writer-director Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Godfather-style story once again praises the alpha male. Vanga is known for saying and thinking things that are controversial.
Vijay takes things into his own hands when his father is shot. He calls himself the “man of the house.” He tells his dad that he will protect the steel company and the family name, but first he wants to get payback.
He has anger and father problems, but he is in a lot of relationships. He gets Geetanjali (Rashmika Mandanna) to like him by being too macho and making inappropriate jokes all the time. “Do not call me bhaiyya.” “I don’t feel like we’re brothers.” He tells her how good her hips are for having children and then, like Christian Grey, takes her away in his private jet for some high-altitude dom/sub love making. He then says, “You were at the bottom, so you didn’t have to do much.” He even thinks she will forgive him for cheating on her because she already does for other crimes he has done. He says, “Aap log mahinay ke chaar din pad badalne par bolte ho, main din mein chaar baar pad badal raha hu” after an accident, making fun of women who complain about period pain.
Bad boys have been praised a lot in pop culture. It’s always interesting to look at people who don’t follow the rules. A little too much of this romanticising is done by Vanga. This director’s views on women and abuse may make you very uncomfortable, but they are his choices for a main character, and he is free to make them. The bigger problem is that the story doesn’t have any point. His angry young man with the gun seems like a rebel without a reason.
It’s okay to like characters who are cocky, broken, or otherwise problematic as long as they have a strong enough reason to explain or excuse their behaviour. Vijay doesn’t have any, so Animal turns into a family drama that is all swag and no content. What is making him so angry and fueled his fire? The main problem in the story—the fight between the father and son—is not dealt with. Aside from Ranbir, the story doesn’t really care about the other characters; even Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol, who are very skilled, are just there to watch. AK is great in the parts where they fight, and Bobby looks scary, but they don’t have much to do. Women are robots that are obedient. The Hindi lines in Mandanna are harder to understand than the movie’s main idea.
The fight feels like it came at the wrong time, but it was shot well. The fight between Ranbir and Bobby is as intense as the famous hand-to-hand fight between Hector and Achilles in Troy. The music and background score fit the mood of the movie well.
Ranbir Kapoor’s skill and fame are very important to “Animal.” The best parts of the movie are his raw sex appeal and unmatched passion. You feel stuck in his troubled mind while his blood-soaked eyes blaze with anger. He is one of the best actors of our time. He is completely free to become the character he plays, which shocks, stuns, and draws you into every frame. RK gives this crazy character that dangerously unpredictable quality, and he really shines in that Vaastav-like important final scene. He should have had a better story to go with this level of acting.
Ranbir Kapoor can play Joaquin Phoenix, but Animal isn’t the Joker. The movie could have been nothing more than a chat between a dad and his kid.