Christian Bale Movie:

All the Little Animals Reviews:
A movie for those with a "I brake for squirrels" bumper sticker!
2009-01-22 - I bought this movie in the used section at Blockbuster because of the description on the DVD packaging. Good deal for $3.99. But what a treasure the movie really is! For me the movie is about the study and contrasts of human relationships and people's relationships with nature and animals. It's a very moving film.

As mentioned by other reviewers, this movie really is an allegorical tale. To me it works on many levels. Christian Bale is a naiive, pained soul who runs away from a hurtful environment. He runs into John Hurt's character in the woods. John Hurt reinforces Bale's love of animals and Hurt also finds Bale's character freeing enough to share his own history.
Together they share a small cottage in the woods where they both find comfort and solace being nature's caretakers.

The dénouement of the film happens when Bales and Hurt's characters come face to face with the very thing they know is true: of all the animals, the cruelest is man. Bales comes to the realization at a critical point in the movie that he has to be the protector not only of the small animals and creatures that he loves but also the protector of fellow harmless human beings, and most importantly, he finds his place in the world and needs to defend it.

Christian Bale is phenomenal. I can see why he has a cult-like fanatical following. I am now a convert.

I've never liked a too formulaic movie and this movie is very different: a pained young man develops a relationship with an old loner in the woods and they bury dead animals together? Wow! But it is exactly that unusual situation that makes the film work. Getting in touch with mother nature reveals much about human nature. It's a very sincere film about healing, trust, happiness, courage, compassion, and contentment. The film is rated "R" for some violence but if you let your kids see depictions of war or street violence on TV or in movies, or play those various violent video games then those kids SHOULD watch this film. It's a good film for the heart, mind, and soul.

I love christian bale
2007-01-31 - I'm Korean..
So...My English is not very good...
What I really want to say is..... christian bale is a good player..
I love christian bale..

Is it a Psychological Drama, and Odd Couple Movie, or a Thriller?
2007-01-04 - Unfortunately, this movie doesn't know what kind of movie it is. It starts out as a psychological drama, even an odd couple movie, but then suddenly, unexpectedly veers into a thriller. If they wanted it to be a thriller, they needed to show more of the evil side of 'Fats' much earlier in the movie. If they wanted it to be a psychological drama, then they needed to peacefully overcome the evil of 'Fats' to show that Bobby could have a fulfilling life, even with his intellectual limitations. Both aspects of the movie are very good, but they simply don't reasonably fit together. Because the acting of John Hurt and Christian Bale is excellent, it is worth watching. (Rarely is a normal intelligence actor able to believably play a truly simple character, but Mr. Bale does the best job I've ever seen.)

Nice, that they fixed the DVD description!
2006-03-13 - Unfortunately, I purchased this movie from Amazon when they were still claiming that it was available in a wide screen format! Alas, when it arrived in fullscreen, I was really bummed out. It's a great film and as such, it really deserves a proper presentation. I suggest following it up with a viewing of American Psycho. The polarity of Bale's performances in each of these films is almost frightening....

Absolutely Beautiful
2005-09-12 - As has been noted, this is an allegorical film and people will often divide down the middle over allegories. If you appreciate them and like digging beneath the surface, this is a remarkable film in a great many regards. Even as just a basic tale, the film works and is given outstanding performances by the three principal actors. Not enough good can be said about Christian Bale, who is maturing one of the finest actors we have today. Here, Bale is playing his exact age, 24, but looks no more than 17. As Bobby is mildly retarded due to a childhood accident of which he has more than one scar to serve as reminder, he is eternally a boy trapped in a man's body. When it comes to playing "damaged goods" Bale pulls off the nearly impossible, making you forget the actor and see only the character. (This was my primary difficulty with Forrest Gump, where everything seemed to draw attention to Mr. Hanks' brilliant "acting.")

Bobby isn't too dim to sense the evil of his stepfather "The Fat" aka Mr. De Winter, and upon his mother's death, realizes the man is out to do him serious harm. By refusing to sign over to The Fat, his inheritances, including the family's successful London department store, Bobby has sealed his fate. The Fat is going to have him declared mad and institutionalized for the remainder of his life. Bobby escapes the mansion, and wends his way towards Cornwall in search of his grandfather. The journey is brief, but symbolic as he finds rides along the trek, a young, hippy family in a van, complete with happy little dog, and an odious trucker whose zest for killing animals in the road causes his death. Wanting to help the trapped, barely alive trucker we stumble upon Mr. Summers (John Hurt) an odd hermit with a few affectations and full of mystery. An unlikely relationship develops between the two men, as Bobby finally finds the father figure denied him all his life. Summers takes Bobby in and instructs him in "The Work" - caring for the burial of animals killed at the hands (and wheels) of man. These scenes, shot in and around Cornwall, are dazzling . . . breathtakingly beautiful.

Inevitably their idyllic existence gives way to the reemergence of The Fat and confrontation, danger, resolution and acceptance. It's a beautiful tale of good versus evil and innocence versus cunning. The acting is uniformly excellent, with a truly stunning performance by Mr. Bale.