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All the Little Animals
Lions Gate Films


7.8

based on 17 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 7 votes
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Internet Movie Database

MPAA RATING: R for some violence

Starring John Hurt, Christian Bale, Daniel Benzali, and James Faulkner

Fleeing from his evil stepfather, a mentally challenged young man (Bale) escapes to the English countryside. In his travels, he befriends an eccentric old man (Hurt) who spends his days burying animals killed by speeding motorists.

GENRE(S):	Suspense/Thriller
WRITTEN BY:	Walker Hamilton (novel) Eski Thomas
DIRECTED BY:	Jeremy Thomas
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: August 19, 2003 Video: July 11, 2000 Theatrical: September 3, 1999
RUNNING TIME:	112 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	UK

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Falls so far outside our ordinary story expectations it may frustrate some viewers.

Boston Globe Jay Carr

Involvingly acted, surehandedly crafted.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

Beautifully produced: a moving film with a fascinating story and exemplary acting.

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

The narrative kept me glued to my seat.

Newsweek Andrea C. Basora

Thomas is supported in his first directorial endeavor by a truly spectacular cast.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

Where the movie falters is in sustaining the tricky balance between pastoral life lessons and creepy suspense.

The New York Times Stephen Holden

Would seem hokey if it didn't have powerful, extraordinary central performances and cinematography that lends the English landscape around Cornwall a mythical cast.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

It's a movie brimming with good intentions, solid production values and searing performances. However, it never quite clicks into place with any real satisfaction.

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

Hurt is slumming in an unchallenging role.

Los Angeles Times Gene Seymour

There's something plodding and uncomfortably strident about Little Animals that keeps the audience from sharing, much less understanding, Bobby's enchantment.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

This moody film is ravishingly beautiful to look at -- but the story's fairy tale atmosphere doesn't entirely mesh with its psychological underpinnings.

Miami Herald Curtis Morgan

The effort is earnest, but the plot turns more and more implausible.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Fantasy-style plot doesn't mesh easily with the unsettling psychological themes woven through it.

LA Weekly Chuck Wilson

Three leads do their best with simplistic characters.

Film.com John Hartl

Simplistic on one level, indecipherable on another, it's a most peculiar muddle.

New York Post Jonathan Foreman

A surprisingly nasty fable about a particularly silly, very English brand of animal-rights extremism.

Mr. Showbiz Michael Atkinson

Hamilton's quasi-Luddite tale doesn't make a coherent movie under the best of circumstances, and these were, apparently, something substantially less than that.

The average user rating for this movie is 7.8 (out of 10) based on 7 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Sue S. gave it a9:
This movie may not be believable, but it is more like a fairy tale in the horrible original sense. In addition to an interesting story, the acting is excellent as is the cinematograpy and music.

[Anonymous] gave it a9:
Beautiful and a great performance from Christian Bale

P CLASS="usercomment">Patty B. gave it an8:
Loved this movie. Beautiful camera work, and great performances by Bale and Hurt.

[Anonymous] gave it a10:
GREAT!

James M. gave it a 1:
Ugh! Roadkill. Caricatures in a good vs. evil fable that is completely outlandish.

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All the Little Animals Lions Gate Films

All the Little Animals
Lions Gate Films