ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

Senteur As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Zandra The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

SnoopyStyle Pol is a teenage boy with a self-aware English speaking teddy bear named Deerhoof. He lives with his older policeman brother who suspects he's talking to the bear again. His best friend is the girl Laia who pines for him. He is fascinated with the mysterious new boy Ikari. Albert (Martin Freeman) is their teacher in the English school. Fellow student Clara goes missing when her car is found in the lake.There is a lifelessness about this movie. All of the teens seem to be bored with the world. The bear is interesting. The self cutting is a bit disturbing. It seems to be a lot of strange things being jammed together in this movie. Oriol Pla is pretty looking boy but I'm not convinced that he's a good actor. Roser Tapias is slightly more compelling but that may be because she's a more compelling character. The boy is a mystery at the start and still a mystery in the end.

andresrub It all begins in a seemingly quiet beautiful province, at the beginning we see a group of friends having fun at a lake while one is immersed for a few seconds and then returns to the surface discovering that something was wrong Then we are Introduced to Pol, who lives with his older brother Llorenc, who tries to take care of him all the time because he knows that something is wrong with his young brother, also we get to know Deerhoof, a teddy bear with conscience and "Pol's best friend". Strange events begin to happen with the arrival of a new student named Ikari , no one knows where he comes from but it's clear that Pol starts feeling a carnal attraction to him, despite having an open relationship with his ​best friend Laia. As the plot unfolds we discover that Pol lives in a fantasy world where Deerhoof represents his beloved childhood and the character of Ikari represents the transition to adulthood.Although Clara disappears (dies drowned in the lake) . Her spirit appeared to Pol while he walks into the woods without knowing the tragic fate of the girl. Despite its similarities to Donnie Darko or Elephant, I call this movie as a teenager and mysterious version of Peter Pan, Ikari is the one that shows Pol how chaotic and painful the grown up world can be, around confusion Pol assumes that he wants his childhood more than anything in the world.Finally Pol jumps off the bridge into the lake trying to rescue Deerhoof, apparently he succeeds and gets DeerHoof back but learning that he pass away in the attempt, then Clara appears to Pol's spirit telling him that everything is OK.In the final scene we learn that both Pol and Clara are in a safe place now, between heaven and earth, where pain doesn't exist anymore, its their own version of Neverland.

harryjohnson2008 ***This Review Contains Spoilers***So what's the deal with these Spanish filmmakers who only seem capable of producing these utterly depressing films? Is life in Spain so miserable, sad and depressing (especially for gay people) that every "gay film" has to end in misery and death??!! Beyond the bleak story and completely depressing ending, I also found it incredibly irresponsible and downright disgusting of Marçal Forés to seemingly glamorize "cutting" in this film. Cutting, or self-mutilation is a serious mental health issue and should not be made in any way to seem sexy or sexual. This is a bizarre film that I can't believe I wasted 90 minutes of my life on. Not only should you not waste your time or money on this film, you should send a message to Mr. Forés to go get himself some anti-depressants, lighten up, and stop making crap films. We watch movies to be entertained and to escape for a short period of time. If I want to see gloomy, dismal, joylessness Mr. Forés I'll turn on the reality of the evening news.

angrymonkeys85 A girl dives into a lake to join her friends only to reappear minutes later, her friends panicking, nearly the other side of the lake. A boy cycles through the forest talking to a small yellow bear who not only talks back but actively follows the boy.It's clear from the opening scenes of 'Animals' that this is not going to be a straightforward narrative. What it is, however, is an achingly beautiful and surreal film which tries to capture some of the beauty, pain and uncertainty of adolescence. The film follows Pol, a confused and insular teenager, and his relationship with those around him in particular his small yellow teddy-bear, and imaginary friend, Deerhoof. Pol is a complex character, unsure of what he wants and unable to put his childhood behind him and move into the 'adult' world around him despite the insistence of his brother and his few human friends. His world is further complicated by the arrival at school of new-boy Ikari who Pol is immediately drawn to but who represents the dangers of the new grown-up world.Oriol Pla is wonderful as Pol, injecting the character with the right amount of moody reflectiveness and naiveté without making the character irritating.Comparisons with 'Donnie Darko' will abound and these are not unjustified, several of the films motifs and set-pieces seem to be lifted almost directly from Richard Kelly's film; indeed, even the overall tone and atmosphere seem to be paying homage to Darko. However the film does not suffer as a result of these, instead they serve to make the world of the film richer and even more beautiful.One of the more interesting elements of the film is its exploration of the consequences of adults' decisions on adolescents' lives, in particular the information adults choose to share and withhold from the teenagers present. Much like the aforementioned 'Donnie Darko', this is all done without a huge number of adult characters being presented in the film. Indeed the one adult who is present in their lives, Martin Freeman playing Pol's English teacher, is shown as well-meaning but hampered by the other adults and the rules of the society around him.This is a film which invites discussion and analysis; there will inevitably be some who will find the lack of answers frustrating and will find some of the more quirky elements of the film irksome. For me, however, these plot elements added to the film's beauty rather than subtracting from it, and felt far less contrived than several other recent 'quirky' releases like 'Stoker'.The film unfolds at a leisurely pace until the final moments where the main storyline, as well as the sub-plots which have been bubbling away, reach a sudden and explosive climax.This is a beautiful film which will stay with you for days and invites a second viewing.