Animals [Movie Review]

Animals [Movie Review] | I watched this one while I was in Surabaya. With Ben Affleck and Kerry Washington leading the cast, it should be good, right?

Let’s dive in and see how this one fares!

SYNOPSIS

Animals (2026) Trivia

• Starring: Ben Affleck, Kerry Washington, Gillian Anderson, Adriana Paz, Luis Gerardo Méndez & Steven Yeun
• Director: Ben Affleck
• Producer: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Brad Weston, Dani Bernfeld & Collin Creighton
• Production Companies: Artists Equity, Makeready & Fifth Season
• Release date: October 9, 2026
• Running time: 108 minutes
• Rating: MA
• Country: United States
• Language: English
• IMDb: 5.7/ 10
• Tomatometer: 38%
• Metascore: 33%
• Matt Damon was originally set to star in Animals, with Ben Affleck directing, but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts with The Odyssey (2026). 
• Ben took over the lead role, prompting his ex wife Jennifer Garner, initially cast as the female lead, to mutually withdraw from the project.. 
• Affleck considered shelving Animals after discovering its similarities to Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest, another kidnapping thriller, but eventually reworked the story and moved forward.   
• CBS Mornings co host Gayle King makes a cameo, with Ben Affleck encouraging her to improvise and draw on her real life interviewing experience.

With the Los Angeles mayoral election just days away, independent candidate Mark Kimball is running out of time, money and possibly his marriage. Desperate to secure victory, Mark pours his remaining life savings into a last minute campaign push, hoping to win over Latino voters and recover his investment once he gets elected. 

The only problem? He makes the decision without consulting his wife, Abigail, who has already been growing distant and secretly planning a future without him.

But politics is about to become the least of their problems.

On Halloween night, their young son Denny goes trick or treating with the family's housekeeper, Cecilia and her son Hector. What should have been an ordinary evening quickly turns into a nightmare when a mysterious figure makes a move that nobody sees coming.

Back at the Kimball mansion, Mark and Abigail receive a terrifying phone call. Their child has been kidnapped and the person responsible is demanding a staggering $7 million in ransom before midnight. There is one strict condition: no police or the consequences will be deadly.

Unfortunately, Mark has already gambled away their savings on his campaign. With time running out and no easy way to raise the money, the couple turns to Sam, Mark's campaign manager, who proposes bringing in a mysterious operative known as Dayle. Her job is to handle the ransom and deal with the kidnappers, but her services come at a rather expensive price.

Then comes a shocking discovery. The kidnappers have taken the wrong child.

As the situation spirals out of control, Mark finds himself caught between saving a young boy's life and protecting his political future. Every decision carries a price and with his campaign hanging by a thread, even a private conversation could become a public scandal.

Meanwhile, long buried secrets begin surfacing within the Kimball household, adding another layer of tension to an already dangerous situation. As the ransom negotiations grow increasingly complicated, it becomes clear that not everyone involved is playing by the same rules.

With a kidnapping, a political campaign, marital troubles and a dangerous game of deception unfolding all at once, Mark must decide just how far he is willing to go to get what he wants.

With his future on the line, will Mark risk everything to save a life or use the crisis to secure his political ambitions?

MY REVIEW

What I Like:  

• Beautiful performance by the cast.
• I love the dilemma thrown into the movie and as expected, all politicians are the same. 

What I Don't Like:

• I feel the final act is rushed and underwhelming.

Will I Watch It Again: I don't mind watching it again.

Overall: 4.6/ 5.0

The pictures are taken from multiple sources on the Internet. Thank you.

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