Bart Layton (The Imposter) wrote and directed the jaw-dropping, real-life story of four college kids out to become instant multi-millionaires by stealing some of America's most treasured, and valuable, rare books (which gives the film its clever title).
It's one of those storylines with the type of beginning you see on NBC's "Dateline": "I could never, ever imagine my son would do something like this. We're in shock." But that's where the metaphor ends. Sure, it's the type of story of that's been told before (seemingly average kids doing something truly unbelievable), but the way Barton tells is makes it one of the best films of the decade.
Layton does a masterful job interleaving interviews of the real-life criminals (now in their 30s) with reenactments of how these four 20 year-olds planned and executed a plot to walk in and take books, valued in the millions, in the middle of the day (since they were only under the supervision of a single librarian).
The ridiculous idea, (based on movie plots of various heists) all goes to plan until it doesn't. The actual burglary is beautifully shot, but it's the post-trauma that knocked me off my chair (mostly due to some stunning acting on the part of Blake Jenner who plays Chas Allen and some very skilled cinematography from Ole Bratt Birkeland). Blake Jenner, who gave a memorable performance in The Edge of Seventeen, is a rising star to watch. His reactions to the realization that they are doomed is truly remarkable.
Evan Peters (American Horror Story) is terrific as Warren Lipka, as are Barry Keoghan and Jared Abrahamson as Spencer Reinhard and Eric Borsuk. The great Ann Dowd plays librarian, Betty Jean 'BJ' Gooch.
American Animals is a fascinating, well-written and directed docudrama that I highly recommend. If you haven't seen Layton's previous documentary, The Imposter, it is also must-see.
It's one of those storylines with the type of beginning you see on NBC's "Dateline": "I could never, ever imagine my son would do something like this. We're in shock." But that's where the metaphor ends. Sure, it's the type of story of that's been told before (seemingly average kids doing something truly unbelievable), but the way Barton tells is makes it one of the best films of the decade.
Layton does a masterful job interleaving interviews of the real-life criminals (now in their 30s) with reenactments of how these four 20 year-olds planned and executed a plot to walk in and take books, valued in the millions, in the middle of the day (since they were only under the supervision of a single librarian).
The ridiculous idea, (based on movie plots of various heists) all goes to plan until it doesn't. The actual burglary is beautifully shot, but it's the post-trauma that knocked me off my chair (mostly due to some stunning acting on the part of Blake Jenner who plays Chas Allen and some very skilled cinematography from Ole Bratt Birkeland). Blake Jenner, who gave a memorable performance in The Edge of Seventeen, is a rising star to watch. His reactions to the realization that they are doomed is truly remarkable.
Evan Peters (American Horror Story) is terrific as Warren Lipka, as are Barry Keoghan and Jared Abrahamson as Spencer Reinhard and Eric Borsuk. The great Ann Dowd plays librarian, Betty Jean 'BJ' Gooch.
American Animals is a fascinating, well-written and directed docudrama that I highly recommend. If you haven't seen Layton's previous documentary, The Imposter, it is also must-see.