Animal Factory (2000)

Director:

Steve Buscemi

Writers (WGA):

Edward Bunker (novel)
Edward Bunker (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

1 August 2000 (Spain)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

On the Inside the Rules Are Brutal And the Stakes Are High

Plot:

A young man goes to prison and a tough, older convict takes him under his wing as a mentor.

Plot Keywords:

Prison | Parole | Drugs | Marijuana | Gang

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Willem Dafoe	...	Earl Copen
Edward Furlong	...	Ron Decker
Danny Trejo	...	Vito
Mark Boone Junior	...	Paul Adams
Seymour Cassel	...	Lt. Seeman
Mickey Rourke	...	Jan the Actress
Tom Arnold	...	Buck Rowan
John Heard	...	James Decker
Chris Bauer	...	Bad Eye
Rockets Redglare	...	Big Rand
Jake La Botz	...	Jesse (as Jake LaBotz)
Mark Engelhardt	...	T.J.
Edward Bunker	...	Buzzard
Victor Pagan	...	Psycho Mike
Ernest Harden Jr.	...	Richland

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language, violence and drug use.

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA (cable rating) | Chile:14 | France:U | Germany:16 (video premiere) | Netherlands:16 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Animal Productions LLC

Trivia:

During the show scene, a vocalist is musically accompanied by a violinist and accordionist - the singer is Antony Hegarty (of Antony and the Johnsons) and the song which he sings a version of is "Rapture" which can be found on the band's self-titled album from 2000.

Goofs:

Continuity: Ron's hair when he first meets Earl.

Quotes:

Earl Copen: Better to reign in hell than to serve in heaven.

Soundtrack:

Rapture

Where They Put the Human Waste

Pay no attention to these other reviews; the people who wrote them don't know what they're talking about: In 1996 I was convicted of armed robbery and sent to prison in Washington state for eight years (of which I did seven)and I'm here to tell you that ANIMAL FACTORY is the real deal; I was a lot like the character played by Edward Furlong and I was lucky enough to meet men like the character played by Wilem Dafoe, guys who didn't want to rape me, guys who didn't want to kill me, guys who acted decently amidst all of the indecency.

Since my release from prison in 2003 I am invariably asked the two big questions when it comes to incarceration in this country: A) did I get raped? and B) is prison really like you see on OZ?

Well, luckily, I didn't get raped and I've never seen OZ but anyone who wants to see what prison is like should get a gander at ANIMAL FACTORY. The entire film drips with authenticity. Within 2 minutes I felt that old queasy feeling in my stomach--exactly as if I were back there myself, all over again.

For those of you out there who might think there is still a bit of rebellious glamour left in going to prison, watch ANIMAL FACTORY and take it from me: being locked up is not cool and its not fun and it is not something that anyone should aspire to.