There's something very satisfying about a film when the director brings forth complete conviction and the actor goes absolutely raw, surrendering to that distinct vision.
The new trailer for Sandeep Reddy Vanga's action thriller Animal packs this excitement which features Ranbir Kapoor's barbaric makeover as a vengeful gangsta.
During the teaser announcement earlier this year, Vanga sparked massive excitement amongst fans when he promised to show Ranbir's 'Vishwaroop' in his first collaboration with the star.
He wasn't lying.
While the teaser showed us his fiery turn, this three-minute-plus theatrical trailer goes a step ahead and presents Ranbir in his bloodiest avatar yet.
He is seen killing mercilessly with knife, axe, and machine gun, like a blood-thirsty... animal.
If the teaser only hinted at it, the trailer highlights what Ranbir's (still unnamed) character has turned into as a result of a violent upbringing during his formative years.
The clip opens with a deranged-looking Ranbir curtly asking his father -- Anil Kapoor looking perplexed -- to enact an unpleasant moment from earlier times when Ranbir pined for his dearest papa's attention as small kid. This triggers something inside him.
The scene sets dramatic undertone for the father-son duo's dysfunctional relationship and the psychological complexities of Ranbir's character, whose bruised face and aggressive demeanour suggest that violence is second nature to his current self.
We then see Anil getting shot by an unknown assailant, which leaves him physically weak. This is when Ranbir takes over his father's clout and swears revenge on who tried to kill his papa.
The trailer then moves on to glimpses of gory, action-filled mayhem with Ranbir walking in slow-mo with his armed militia. This is superbly accentuated by terrific BGM by Harshavardhan Rameshwar, who, by the way, also scored Vanga's previous films, Arjun Reddy and Kabir Singh.
The trailer reaches its peak when Bobby Deol's mysterious man appears, with his face drenched in blood. He is not given a single line to utter and we still don't know what his character all about, but it's enough.
In the final bits, a fist fight ensues between him and Ranbir, which leaves the latter knocked out. The last visual of Bobby lying on Ranbir's back while smoking a cigarette leaves us with a question -- Who exactly personifies that punchy one-word title?
Animal will let loose on December 1.
