Metro Australia – July 2019

shoesandspotlesswhiteshirtforcluesastohisintentions.

Barelycontainingherdisdain,sheaskshim,‘Whatkindof

personareyou?’Attwenty­nine,she’sunimpressedbyhis

early­to­bed,early­to­rise,homebodyroutine.Butthat’s

preciselythekindofmaturestability that Laura, at thirty­

two,is learningtoyearnfor.

Outshonebya sisterwho’smarriedandhavingkids,

LauraadmiresJim’sdedicationtohiscreativepractice,

andwantssomeofthatforherself.WhereasTylerboasts

inspiration,Jimprojectsa quietdetermination,thegood

influenceneededfor Laura to knuckledown and finish her

novelabout‘a spidercaughtin itsownwebandthewoman

whorescuesit’ (oneofthemanytitularanimals– including

foxes,cats and fish – threadedthroughthe film). To Laura,

Jimrepresents the ‘food, sex and safety’ all animals need

tosurvive.

Acrossthe film’s narrativearc, Tyler and Laura’slove

manifestsin variousguises,fromplatonictoromantic,

familialtoaspirational.Sometimes,it’sunconditional;

sometimes,it’sunreciprocated;butit’salwayscomplex

andrealistic.ShawkatandGrainger nail the sense ofco­

dependenceinherentin many

friendships.Habituallyarmin

arm,handin hand,sittingand

lyingoneachother,they’refused

physicallyaswellasemotionally,

almostasif eachwomanwants

tobecometheother– a synthe­

sissignpostedin theopening

montage,whichis accompanied

byPeachessinging,‘Thegirls

wannabeher.Theboyswanna

beher.I wannabeher.Yes,I do.’

But their enmeshmentcat­

alysesa stringofrepercussions:

confusion,resentment,alienation

and, paradoxically,loneliness.As Tyler growsdesperateto

ensurethattheirlivesstayintertwined,herpassionateex­

troversiononlysuffocatesLaura.ThestolenjarofMDMA

thatappearsinsceneafterscenestartstostandinfor

anhourglasscountingdowntoD­day.Eachlicked­and­

dippedfingertipnudgesTyler and Laura’syouthfulalliance

closertoobsolescence.‘[S]ometimeswithfriendshipsyou

needthemtoendandletgoeventhoughthey’rebeautiful

andwonderfulandworthcelebrating,’saysHyde.^1 In this

way,thedwindlingjarbecomesanaffectingreminderthat

it’sokaytogrieve for change, but that it isn’t something

to be feared.

Women on and off screen

ProducedbyDublin’sVicoFilmsandAdelaide’sCloser

Productions,Animalsis the first featuredramato have

resultedfromtheIrish–Australianco­productiontreaty

since it was signedin 1998.^2 BestknownforherCrystal

Bear–winningfeaturedebut, 52 Tuesdays(2013),andthe

six­part 2017 ABCTVseriesF*!#ingAdelaide, Hyderegu­

larly examinesgender,sexuality,family,performativityand

socialconditioningin herwork.Thesesamethemesare

interrogatedinAnimalswithHyde’sreliablelyricism,except

this time she has enlisted actors with some bankable star

power,therebyimbuingthe film with broader commercial

appealthanherprevioustitles.

Animalsalso marksHyde’sfirst adaptation,with the

director’sfrequentwritingpartnerMatthewCormack– who

co­scripted 52 Tuesdays,F*!#ingAdelaideand 2007 short

filmMyLastTenHourswithYou– absentfromtheproject.

UnsworthcollaboratedwithHydefromtheoutset;^3 not

onlydidshetransporthertext’ssettingfromitsoriginal

ManchestertoDublin,butshealsomadesomefundamen­

talcharacterandstructuralrevisionsin herscreenplay.For

instance,thebook’snonlinearnarrativeintroducesLauraand

Jimasalreadyengagedin theopeningchapter.In contrast,

the film’s (mostly)linear structuremeansthe audiencegets

tobuildrapportwithandaffectionforLauraandTylerasa

closed,tight­knit team first, beforeJim entersthe pictureand

crimpstheirgirl­powerdynamic.Anothercrucialchangeis

thatJean(AmyMolloy)is nowLaura’ssister,notTyler’s.With

thisvisualandpsychologicalreminderofherdomesticonus

toprocreatenowmuchclosertohome,Laura’sintrospec­

tivehero’sjourneyfeelsallthemorepressing.Similarly,

thisnarrative amendmentfurtherisolatesthe filmic Tyler

• a strangerin a strangeland,
  distancedfromherAmericankin,
  relyingon Laura for the uncondi­
  tional love of a sister.
  Withitsmelangeofwittyhu­
  mour and heartfeltangst,the film
  retainsUnsworth’svisionthrough
  Tyler’ssardonic,often lewd one­
  linersandLaura’sbentforstaring
  helplesslyata blankWorddocu­
  ment.Snippetsofproseanddia­
  loguefromthenovelarewoven
  into the film’s velvetytexturesvia
  handwrittennotesfromLaura’s
  journal,shotin extremeclose­
  up with a shallowdepth of field, momentarily deleting the
  worldbeyonda writer’sinteriority.
  UnsworthandHyde’spartnershipalignsAnimalswith
  a gradualfeministupsurgeonscreensofallsizesoverthe
  past decade.In her analysisof the highest­grossingfilms of
  2018, MarthaM Lauzen– executivedirectorof the Center
  for the Study of Womenin Televisionand Film at San Diego
  State University– has found that male protagonistscon­
  tinuetodominateourscreens,withwomenaccounting
  for roughlyjust a third of major characters.Rates of rep­
  resentationforwomenofcolourdropevenfurther.^4 As
  Lauzenhasoutlinedelsewhere,onepotentialcausefor
  thisdearthoffemalecharacterscouldbethatwomenare
  alsodrasticallyunderrepresentedbehindthecamera,in
  bothHollywood^5 andAmericanindependent^6 filmmaking
  alike. On local shores,ScreenAustralia’slandmarkGender
  Mattersreport,whichtrackswomen’sparticipationin dom­
  estic film production,has revealedthat womenaccounted
  for just 30 per cent of producers,21 per cent of writersand
  16 per cent of directorsworkingin featurefilmmakingfrom
  1970 to2014.^7 Damningly,the last figure has not risen since
  the 2015 releaseofGenderMatters.^8 Yet,in recentyears,
  wehavealsoseenincreasedfervourforthe‘strongfemale
  characters’of films likeOcean’s 8 (GaryRoss,2018)and
  Captain Marvel (Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck, 2019).^9  And

ANIMALSIS A FILMABOUT

LOVE... IT’SALSOA FILM

ABOUTFEAR.LIKEMANY

YOUNGWOMEN,TYLER

ANDLAURAARESCARED

OFANIMPENDINGFUTURE,

ONETHATMAYORMAY

NOTYIELDA CAREER,

MARRIAGE,CHILDREN

AND/OR FAMILY.

22 • Metro Magazine 201 | © ATOM