From Angel Studios, Andy Serkis helms an all-new take on disturbing George Orwell classic, Animal Farm. Screenwriter Nicholas Stoller, who brilliantly found a way to bring The Muppets back to the big screen in 2011, and also hilarious sequels Neighbors 2, Zoolander 2, and Get Him to the Greek, turns his pen to the farm, bringing along the meta insanity he’s best known for. Two juxtaposing features clash spectacularly as we watch adorable farm animals duke it out in an attempt to maintain a new normal when they revolt. It’s not difficult to see what made this so appealing for the animation medium, and Serkis finds plenty of wildly creative ways to depict the story. Hilarious, disturbing, and compelling all at once, Animal Farm allows Andy Serkis to explore a veritable sandbox of power dynamics, with the backdrop of absolutely adorable animals.
Serkis has collected quite the ensemble cast to fill the prospective roles of various farm animals (and even an additional de facto villain); indeed, in some context that would raise a red flag. Movies like Doogal, The Emoji Movie, and even Angry Birds seem to exist merely as a way for major talent to cash in with a quick paycheck despite adding very little in the way of vocal prowess. Such in not the case here—every single choice has been cherry-picked, perfectly suiting their respective, richly drawn characters. This includes Glenn Close, Gaten Matarazzo, Jim Parsons, Kieran Culkin, Laverne Cox, Seth Rogen, and many more. This Animal Farm isn’t just monkey business, nor does it fully rely on tired animal puns.
This take on Animal Farm reimagines the allegory in a literal fashion, while still finding a way to capture the soul of Orwell’s source material. For the familiar, that still means animal deaths, an emotionally-driven narrative, and exploring core themes of power and corruption. What does it mean to be free? Each animal has different ideas of the concept. They decide to take the farm into their own hands when their owner, farmer Joe, fails to pay the bills. In a harrowing opening, a team shows up to seize Joe’s assets, and cart off its animals to the slaughterhouse. But the animals have other plans. They fight back, maintaining their ground, and turning the page for a new farm era. Animal Farm will be the first farm fully run by animals. The arguably evil corporate CEO Frieda Pilkington (Close) desperately wants this last piece of farmland to maintain her control over the entire dominion.
The plot is strung together by lead character Lucky (Matarazzo), an adorable young pig who has always dreamed of a future where all animals live freely and equally without any human oppression to hold them back. Lucky can read human text, which puts him a leg above most of the other farm animals. Through Lucky’s eyes, we almost start to believe in a harmonious place, too. It turns out running a farm alone is a hell of a lot of work. Unless the animals all contribute to the greater whole, it seems unlikely that Animal Farm will survive much longer than its redneck owner.
Under the guidance of Snowball (Cox), the animals create a system built on shared labor and equality. Laverne Cox as Snowball delivers warmth in her vocal work, making her a believable leader. The rules are simple, though even upon first hearing them, they almost feel made to be broken. No animals shall wear clothes, sleep in beds, kill other animals, or “drink naughty juice.” Most important of all: all animals are equal. The concepts, particularly the last one, should make for compelling talking points for families. In theory, equality for all should be a non-issue, an aspirational concept that, starting fresh, should be attainable. Yet, there’s an argument to be made that true equality is impossible due to human nature. The glimmer of hope that it can ever be found and maintained seems to be consistently broken by the awful way of the world.
Just as the novel before it, the true villain(s) of the piece are downright infuriating. As time passes, rule-breaker Napoleon (Rogen) begins collecting power, slowly dismantling the rules that defined their freedom. What starts as a hopeful revolution gradually transforms into a familiar cycle of exploitation, forcing Lucky to confront what freedom truly means. Can Lucky hold onto his own “humanity” in the process, or is he too destined to become a rule breaker? One thing is certain: Rogen gives great villain, injecting his pudgy piggy as a polar opposite to his own take on Disney’s Pumbaa. Woody Harrelson’s horse, Boxer, brings an incredible kindness to a supporting role. Matarazzo’s Lucky anchors the film with sweetness and emotional growth, the actual anchor of the piece.
Major story beats are maintained, though thankfully many other elements have been remixed or updated for fresh perspectives. The animation is always striking, with several sequences standing out for their scale, particularly the final act involving a dam, and a disturbing death. Serkis still balances the beauty of the landscapes and cutesy nature of the animals with a rotten, corrupted nature that slowly creeps in. There’s also a clever use of framing devices, including classy surveillance-style character introductions, that modernize the story’s perspective, subtly updating the proceedings for a contemporary audience.
Some tonal unevenness still ultimately balances humor against that darker subject matter. This is not your father’s Animal Farm, both for better and for worse. Certainly, a few elements do stick out, like an extended fart joke, or an over-reliance on modern technology once the plot takes a more sinister turn. Still, this animated gem is a movie for our modern era, one in which corruption and misinformation occur in plain sight. Distinct and timely, Animal Farm breathes new life into a timeless story that has perhaps never felt more relevant than it does in 2026.
Get your fresh produce at the farmer’s market at the very first animal-run farm! Animal Farm snorts onto the big screen on Friday, May 1st.
