Animalada

Animalada (2001): Argentina – Directed by Sergio Bizzio

Not rated by the MPAA – contains odd behavior, some sex, some violence.

Animalada is an Argentinean soap opera.  It’s full of jealousy, rape, murder, cheating lovers, worried families, and crazy people.  The main difference is that here the main love interest is a sheep.  In fact, the tagline pretty much sums it up: “A Man. A Sheep. It’s Complicated.”  Those few words tell you most of what you need to know about the movie.

Synapse Films has somehow found this and made it available on R1 DVD, and for that, at least, I’m thankful.  Not that I necessarily think there is a need for more films about zoophilia, but rather it’s an interesting slice of a film culture I still haven’t been exposed to much.  It’s also a pretty enjoyable and funny film.  It’s got a dry, dark sense of humor.  This is primarily because it plays everything so straight. We’re introduced to Alfredo and his wife, Natalie.  She comes from a wealthy family and runs a magazine about polo.  They mainly live in Buenos Aires but spend a couple months a year at their ranch in the country.  Here is where the problems arise.

It’s the couple’s 29th anniversary but Alfredo is distracted.  One of his pretty little sheep has called out to him, and he has it put aside in a private barn.  He provides it with a blanket and starts spending some quality time with it.  He soon realizes he’s falling in love with the sheep, and after finally consummating their relationship he is happy and full of life again.  However, things start going not so well when their main ranch hand strikes out (girl-wise) at the club one night and comes back to the ranch a little drunk.  He starts raping the sheep, and Alfredo, bursting in and discovering the crime, becomes full of rage and gets all stabby with a pitchfork.  Pretty soon he’s trying to hide things from his wife and their two kids, but complications continue to arise.

I won’t spoil the rest of the story, but rest assured that Alfredo gets into some more shenanigans.  Even the ending has a delightfully ironic bite to it.  All along the entire cast and production is deadly serious.  Almost no one smiles and there are very few funny jokes told.  This is a black comedy and most of the chuckle-worthy moments come from the absurd situations that Alfredo and Fanny (the sheep) find themselves in.  The direction is competent, with a couple stylistic flourishes that add a little spice to the proceedings.  They don’t distract from the story, however.  The acting is perfectly fine, with Carlos Roffe and Christina Banegas filling the roles of Alfredo and Natalie quite well.  Both appear to be veterans of the big and small screens in Argentina, so this shouldn’t be a surprise.

I’m guessing people would either be attracted or repulsed by the subject matter.  Those attracted to it would probably be hoping for a gory, nasty exploitation flick.  They will probably end up disappointed as the film never goes down the exploitation road.  It does contain some violence, but most of it isn’t particularly gory.  It also contains plenty of sheep sex, though none of it is graphic.  Be warned, though, that just because it’s not graphic it doesn’t mean it’s not disturbing.  It’s a bit of an odd film and probably not one that most normal people would be interested in.

I was almost thinking of Sam Raimi’s early Evil Dead movies during parts of it, though I’m not entirely sure why.  I think it’s that odd combination of strange and absurd happenings mixed with a dose of blood and dark humor that draws the comparison.  Those with an interest in Argentinean films might want to stay away unless they also appreciate fringe films.  However, anyone interested in seeing a film that hasn’t really been made before should be sure to search it out. They will most definitely enjoy themselves.

Originally reviewed at 24Framespersecond.net