George Orwell's Animal Farm is not a sacred text; adaptation can add historical perspective. But Andy Serkis' animation, with a cheap digital look, betrays Orwell by blandifying the Stalinist allegory with a Disney-style happy ending.
A sugar-coated betrayal
The pivotal moment when pigs and humans look the same occurs around the one-hour mark of this 94-minute film, not at the end. This signals a new third act, but instead of an ingenious finale, the film descends into panto. Napoleon (voiced by Seth Rogen) eliminates Snowball (Laverne Cox), corrupts with human money from a new character Pilkington (Glenn Close), and uses a Big Brother-style screen.
Comeuppance and confusion
Napoleon gets his comeuppance from young animal rebels; the farm burns. Survivors on a riverbank ponder their mistake: putting trust in a leader like Napoleon “or even Snowball for that matter.” The film subtracts rage, satire, passion, and meaning. Animal Farm is in UK and Irish cinemas from 17 July, and in Australian cinemas from 16 July.
