“Sandeep Reddy’s direction in the film ‘Animal’ is unique, based on the concept of the Alpha Man. The film is quite long and, to be honest, demands a nuanced review. However, I’ve attempted to summarize everything briefly. The film’s main character, Ranvijay (played by Ranveer Kapoor), is the son of Balbir Singh (played by Anil Kapoor). Balbir Singh also has two daughters – Reet (Saloni Batra) and Roop (Anshul Chauhan).
Emotions and Thoughts
Similar to old film songs that express love for parents, this film also has a soft song towards the father – ‘Papa meri jaan’. Ranvijay considers his father as the best in the world, and this song expresses his feelings. We can watch Ranvijay getting injured and ignoring others in his childhood as a portrayal of his love for his father.
Since childhood isnt the main concern of the movie, Ranveer Kapoor’s entry happens early on. In his adult form, Ranvijay presents his thoughts along with his emotions right from the start of the film. He believes that power-determined division is appropriate, and in old societies, ‘Alpha Men,’ i.e., the most powerful men, used to arrange food and security for everyone. But the subsequent system, from religions and all institutions to modern democracy, is the result of weak people gathering together due to selfishness, and as a consequence, people are gradually forgetting their true character.
Due to the concept of the ‘Alpha Man,’ Ranvijay’s every emotion leans towards extremes. For instance, if one thinks like an ‘Alpha Man,’ he can never be ordinary. It’s evident that this concept of the ‘Alpha Man’ isn’t new and has been sold in the market for a long time. Hence, it’s no wonder if young and male viewers easily like the film. It’s doubtless that this concept’s direct connection is with patriarchy. Therefore, many references or signs about penis from the start to the end of the film are not coincidental. Sexual relationships have become a part of films as a subject sold nowadays.
Logical Analysis
However, in a scene where Reet is teased in college, Ranvijay retaliates. For that reason Balbir Singh hits him, calling him a criminal. Ranvijay then objects to being called a criminal and tells his father that legally even Balbir could be called a criminal because he hit a child (Ranvijay), such scenes in the film touch upon real issues and thus feel good. Through such scenes, the film adds touch of realism and logic, but make way for glorification of unrealistic, false, and negative things.
The modern society and cinema have consistently tried to break the gap between men and women. Whether it’s about marriage or extramarital love, efforts have been made to bring sexual relationships into the realm of common rights. Even though Ranvijay denies a woman’s rights over her body, he also tells his wife Geetanjali (Rashmika Mandanna) not to remarry if he’s not around.
What’s amusing is that the film tries to justify all of Ranvijay’s actions as a hero. It’s not that films don’t glorify revenge or violence; nor do they lack violence. But this film presents revenge and violence in a different light. After all, if it’s about the ‘Alpha Man,’ how can it be ordinary? Hence, the film ultimately showcases a gore, vulgar and brutal fight between brothers.
The Relationship between Animal, Monkey, and Human
Before concluding, a couple of points need to be made clear. It’s not that the film presents patriarchy in an excellent way or is capable of showing Ranvijay as an ideal patriarchal character. The dignity present in patriarchy, from father-son relationships to all other relationships, is completely absent from the film. Unfortunately, the soft song composed about children also becomes meaningless without this dignity. Instead of becoming an ideal patriarchal character, Ranvijay seems to be a victim of a wrong environment, which ultimately makes him another form of Frankenstein.
The film is named ‘Animal,’ probably because of the glorification of wildness. However, two scenes – the story of the monkey narrated by Ranvijay at the beginning and the fight between Ranvijay and Abraar (Bobby Deol) at the end – show a similarity. If you’ve seen the bloody battles between chimpanzees, the final scene reminds you of that; the thick beards of both characters further make it more possible.”
To engage the audience, The film has a lot to offer, with good acting as well. However, in terms of learning and understanding, the film doesn’t provide much. We’ve read that our ancestors were monkeys, and if we dissect the essence of the film, we realize that we haven’t progressed much since then; we still have much to learn about humanity and compassion. After watching the film, memories of Yuval Noah Harari come to mind, and what he says feels right, that humans have always been violent and we ourselves were also the cause of the extinction of our companion species.