Search - Animal Factory on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Adult Situations, Not For Children, Profanity, Sexual Situations Movie Release: 2000 DVD Release: 01/09/2001 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 34 mins Studio: Columbia TriStar Total Copies: 1 Genres: Drama, Psychological Drama, Prison Film

Actor-turned-director Steve Buscemi follows up on his restrained 1996 directorial debut Trees Lounge (1996) with this gritty, understated prison drama. Twenty-one-year-old suburban kid Ron (Edward Furlong) got busted for dealing drugs and slapped with an especially severe jail sentence. Though he tries to keep a low profile at prison, he soon attracts unsavory attention of various sex-starved goons. Fearing rape, he appeals directly to Earl (Willem Dafoe), a fellow prisoner who runs the place like it was his own fiefdom. Though Ron's request is strictly against this rarified culture's baroque rules, Earl takes him under his wing, and soon he is a part of Earl's inner circle. Slowly Ron learns the breadth of Earl's power, ranging from the easy procurement of drugs to the violent dispatching of a prisoner who gets out of line. As Ron grows increasingly indebted to Earl, he wonders how he is expected to repay him. Yet Earl, who shows his fondness for the lad with fatherly tenderness counterbalanced with repressed yearning, never pushes his advantage. Other members of the cast include Tom Arnold as a salivating hill-billy and an almost unrecognizable Mickey Rourke as a cross-dressing prison queen. This film was highly praised at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

Willem Dafoe - Earl Copen
Edward Furlong - Ron Decker
Seymour Cassel - Lt. Seeman
Mickey Rourke - Jan the Actress
Steve Buscemi - A.R. Hosspack

Steve Buscemi's gritty prison drama Animal Factory comes to DVD in Columbia Tristar's widescreen release. Features include both Dolby Digital and Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound and English and Spanish subtitles, along with a dubbed French track. The original theatrical trailer and biographies/filmographies of the cast and crew are also provided, along with commentary by actor Danny Trejo and writer Edward Bunker. Bunker's commentary is especially interesting, considering that he is not only the writer, but also an ex-con who experienced prison life firsthand. Interviews with Buscemi and actors Willem Dafoe, Edward Furlong, and Mickey Rourke add insight into the filmmaking process and into Animal Factory's characters and themes. Even though the subject matter does not lend itself to sweeping visuals or a majestic score, this DVD presents an intense human drama in a high quality transfer. ~ Michael Zerbo, All Movie Guide