REVIEW: Animal Kingdom – Crime Doesn’t Pay

Animal Kingdom is a show based on a 2010 Australian movie of the same name. The show is set in Southern California and feature The Cody’s, a crime family led by Smurf (Ellen Barkin). Yeah, her nickname is Smurf. When her grandson J needs a place to say she takes him in and introduces him to his Uncles. They are a rough bunch and he is thrown into some bad situations.

Let’s talk about the good first, shall we?
It’s wonderfully shot, amazingly directed and the cast is beautiful. I mean, Ellen Barkin, Scott Speedman and Shawn Hatosy, to name a few.

This however is where the good ends. The problem with bad guys is they need to be likable at least some of the time. I’ve seen two episodes and while Baz (Scott Speedman) is trying really hard to be likable the rest of the guys aren’t. It’s all lies, hard partying, guns and power plays.

I like to give shows the benefit of the doubt – it takes a few episodes for things to even out and find their grove. Hopefully this show pulls it together since the cast is so great and the idea is solid.

Animal Kingdom airs Tuesday 9/8c on TNT