Animal Room (1995)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

Craig Singer

Writer:

Craig Singer (writer)

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Echoing Alarms of Clockwork Orange

Plot:

Arnold Mosk is an intelligent, sensitive teen with a drug problem who's herded into a class for problem students where he's terrorized by Doug Van Housen and his goons. |

Plot Keywords:

Drugs

Cast

Ryan Payne Bell	...	Pink
Dechen Thurman	...	Hinge
Eddie Malavarca	...	Porky
Matthew Lillard	...	Doug Van Housen
Lori Heuring	...	Shelly
Brian Vincent	...	Eddie LeMaster
Michale Graves	...	The Misfits (as Michael Graves)
Neil Patrick Harris	...	Arnold Mosk
Stephen Pearlman	...	Principal Jones
Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein	...	The Misfits (as Doyle)
Joseph Siravo	...	Dr. Rankin
Pamela Kramer	...	Teacher 1
John Digaletos	...	Teacher 2
Madison Arnold	...	Older Guard
Paula Stevens	...	Teacher 3

MPAA:

Rated R for brutal violence, strong language, sexual content and drug use.

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Vanguard International Cinema

Quotes:

Arnold Mosk: What do you want from me?
Doug Van Housen: I want your blood in my mouth.

Movie Connections:

References Deliverance (1972)

Soundtrack:

Dr. Phibes Rides Again

Stylish, great performances -- worth a viewing

As many others who have written reviews of this film, I had never heard of it, but stumbled upon it on a video shelf. Though I've found some of the greatest films I've ever seen that way, more often than not if you haven't heard of it, avoid it. This doesn't fall into the greatest category, but I didn't dislike it enough to trash it. The comparisons to "A Clockwork Orange" on the box are dead-on, though this film doesn't come close to being the masterpiece of the Malcolm McDowall film.

The acting in "Animal Room" is very solid and the characters are interesting, but the story is confusing and uneven at times. It feels like there's probably a bunch of other scenes that are sitting on the cutting-room floor. The cinematography is very stylish and mesmorizing for such a low-budget film -- particularly in the hallucination sequences. At points the dialogue is so witty that you have to laugh, though other times it seems like they're trying to cram far too much into it. Which is why it's sad that as the film progresses it really starts to lose steam, leaving the ending somewhat confusing, disturbing, and contrived.

Neil Patrick Harris proves that he can play something other than "Doogie Howser" (though I learned that when I got hooked on the short-lived "Stark Raving Mad). His performance in this film is enduring and disturbing all at once -- at times you can wholeheartedly agree with his character, but you still have pity on him. Matthew Lillard also gives a strong performance, but they've gone out of their way to make him an evil scumbag -- so even during the scenes where you should pity his character you just can't. But I always say if someone is convincing enough in a role that you hate them, that person really can act.

One other thing that I noticed -- both from the back of the box and other reviewers on IMDb, I was expecting one of the most graphically violent films in history. Far from it. While the violence is excessive and sometimes uncalled for, Rambo and any film with Van Damme is far more graphic than this film ever thought about being.

Bottom line: While not everyone's taste, this film deserves a chance by anyone that likes films of this genre. Too bad that none of those people have ever heard of it.