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Among the Beasts Review: Tory Kittles Elevates Action Thriller

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A guilty war veteran struggling with PTSD allies with a drug dealer's daughter to find kidnapped girls. Among the Beasts wavers between serious character drama , rote action thriller, and a somewhat obvious mystery. Star Torry Kittles elevates the script with a hard-hitting performance. He packs gravitas and wicked punches as a man overcome by failures. The protagonist's deadly serious countenance adds critical weight. Among the Beasts suffers from a cinematographic imbalance. Multiple scenes are too dark and hazy. The pieces don't come together smoothly, but Kittles certainly keeps you engaged.

Paul (Kittles), known as LT because of his Marines service, sits with twelve-year-old Kayla (Mia Mei Williamson) at the veterinarian. She's worried her beloved dog is sick. Kayla's father, Bobby, was killed in action under his command. LT has sworn to care for her and Bobby's family. LT decompresses by sparring with the men in his old unit. The veterans band together to overcome the horrors they experienced.

Kayla's Missing

LT races to the police station to meet Kayla's mother and aunt. Her purse was found on the street in front of a local bar. The police think she may have run away. LT promises he will find her. A year later, Kayla is still missing. LT has descended into alcoholism and drug abuse. He's lost the will to live.

LT gets a visit from Lola (Libe Barer) and her bodyguard (Sarunas J. Jackson). Lola is the daughter of an imprisoned drug lord. Her thirteen-year-old cousin was recently snatched. Lola needs to find her without the police. LT comes out of his stupor with Lola's new clues. Could Kayla's disappearance be connected? He resolves to find the culprit at all costs. They uncover a conspiracy with a startling connection.

A Broken Man

Among the Beasts dramatically shifts tone between acts. The beginning focuses on LT's efforts to do right. He's haunted by Bobby's death. LT leads his men on the battlefield and the home front. They peel him off the floor as he succumbs to inner demons. His inability to find Kayla has left him a broken man. He's let down a beloved comrade twice. LT's life no longer has purpose. Kittles sells the despair and frustration.

Related: Among the Beasts Clip Gives Sneak Peek of Tory Kittles Investigating the Disappearance of His Niece

Lola's introduction turns the film into a version of Taken . Good character development is replaced by procedural action. The partners run into the usual slew of goons and nitwits before finding their target. Who learns that LT means business and will inflict brutal punishment to get answers. You didn't have to be Sherlock Holmes to catch this baddie. Actor turned director/writer Matthew Newton ( Underbelly , From Nowhere ) needed to beef up the material. It was fairly easy to guess the mastermind behind the curtain. That said, the ending isn't predictable. But the breadcrumbs to get there aren't difficult to find.

Coming Out of Darkness

Among the Beasts has LT coming out of darkness. This thematic progression stumbles. Parts of the film are poorly lit and lack definition. This would normally be a fatal blow. Kittles strong performance holds your interest to an unexpected conclusion. I'm on board for further missions with LT.

Among the Beasts is a production of Cubby House Pictures and Cavalry Independent. It will have a VOD and limited theatrical release from Gravitas Ventures on February 10th.

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Among the Beasts

Coulda been a good movie..

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• Apr 1, 2023

black Taken

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One rifle, A hand gun and Aknife

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Breakout Performance

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Need end credit music, for the Piano and Jazz Sascaphone: GOD Bless ya

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Review: ‘Among The Beasts’ Tory Kittles Impresses In Matthew Newton's Latest Action Thriller

Paul Jameson (Tory Kittles), or LT as everyone calls him, is a former US Marine in Among The Beasts . LT lives in New York and is trying every day to keep a promise he made to one of his fallen brothers, Bobby. That promise was to look after Bobby’s daughters, especially his youngest Kayla (Mia Mei Williamson). A promise that LT has no intention of breaking, until one day when Kayla is kidnapped. LT once again makes another promise, this time to Kayla’s older sister, that he is going to bring her home.

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Where to watch

Among the beasts.

Directed by Matthew Newton

When a gangster’s daughter reluctantly teams with a former Marine to find her kidnapped cousin, the combat veteran must overcome his own demons in order to rescue the child.

Tory Kittles Libe Barer Sarunas J. Jackson Kate Easton Jeremy Holm Mark Mitton Jon Bass Jim Norton

Director Director

Matthew Newton

Writer Writer

Stunts stunts.

Jeff Imada Lauren Mary Kim

Menagerie Films Cavalry Independent Cubby House Pictures

Alternative Title

Thriller Mystery Action

Releases by Date

• Theatrical limited

10 Feb 2023

Releases by country.

93 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Karl ★★★ 4

Almost always down for a save-the-children from sex-traffickers flick. What's more satisfying than seeing these mofos go down? The action is hindered by a low budget. It's the performance from Tory Kittles that makes this worth watching. He had me locked in with his go-for-broke performance during the first half hour. There's a scene where he's snorting rails and drinking straight from the bottle that made me wonder if this was more of a downer character study. "One Year Later" appears on the screen and it becomes the expected routine grade-B crime flick. Setting it apart is an interesting neo-noir vibe that kept me watching. The location shooting in Queens (my home) was a bonus.

Review by joshrowley ★

Review by trublu215 ★★½

If only this had a bigger budget and more competent actors besides Tory Kittles, this would have been a cult classic. As it stands, the low budget and shaky (at best) technical work hampers the films ability to be something memorable and exciting. Tory Kittles does his absolute best to carry this film but it leaves much to be desired in almost every department. For Kittles, I give an extra half star.

Review by Samuel Cisneros ★★★

There seems to be a lot of hate for this film but I found it to be serviceable and, at times, gripping. It feels low budget but they keep the atmosphere at a good level so you can get immersed in this world. It’s worth a look.

Review by Frederick Arrowsmith ★★½

(Pros) A surprisingly decent scene from comedian Jim Norton as a NY cop / The almost comical dry cleaners scene / The Get Carter line / It has a weird atmosphere to it / (Cons) It's left with an open ending / (Who stole the movie ?) Tory Kittles

Review by Tampacrow ★★★★

Surprisingly great. Good performances across the board and genuine tension in the climax. I hope it gets a sequel.

Review by King Aaron ★★★½

It’s one of those surprisingly pretty great indies. It has a great hook and the rest might not be as strong but it certainly is a good one.

Review by K. Waste ★½

Really back on my grind this year with the super low-budget actioners, this time a shoestring neo-noir pick-up courtesy of our friends at Gravitas Ventures, one of the biggest distributors of modern schlock. I don't know what it says about me but the only reason this really made it onto my watchlist was because I saw Little Jimmy Norton had a small role in it - and, boy, does he ever stink.

This is writer-director and actor Matthew Newton's fifth feature film. He also wrote the Jessica Chastain "tough girl" star-vehicle AVA from back in 2020. Well, this is the first film of his that I've watched. It's not good. It's got heart - and it looks like it's shot…

Review by Alf ★★★★

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

This film is both captivating and simmering with underlying rage thet occasionally surfaces, reminding us of the raw emotions at play.

The performances are impressive, with each actor fully embodying their role, allowing the audience to connect deeply with the characters' experiences. Like, even the social worker whose role was minor but very important felt exactly the way. I think anyone should feel about her when you find out what she's doing, and that's sleazy.

The film's handling of trauma and post-traumatic stress from military service is particularly noteworthy, offering a nuanced portrayal that avoids clichés, but can show how hopeless it can seem when you retreat into your own mind with substance abuse.

It beautifully illustrates the brotherhood forged…

Review by Ice Pop ★★★

Therapy bad? 

Not mind blowing but i enjoyed my time watching

Review by Rique A. Jr. ★★

RIP AJ. One of the realest side character.

Review by LucidDreams ★½

(1.5/5 - Bad)

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Actor Tory Kittles, director Matthew Newton break down new thriller ‘Among the Beasts’

Jason Fraley | [email protected]

February 10, 2023, 1:40 AM

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Hear our full conversation on my podcast “Beyond the Fame.”

Tory Kittles is known as Laroy Wayne in “Sons of Anarchy” (2008-2011), Detective Thomas Papania in “True Detective” (2013), Frederick Douglass in “Harriet” (2019) and currently across Queen Latifah in the CBS crime drama “The Equalizer” (2021-present).

On Friday, his new film, “Among the Beasts,” hits select theaters and Video on Demand.

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The action thriller follows a former Marine, L.T., who reluctantly teams with a gangster’s daughter to find her kidnapped cousin, overcoming his own demons as a combat veteran.

“It’s a story of a flawed hero, a former Marine dealing with PTSD,” Kittles told WTOP. “I love the flawed hero. I feel like we are all the flawed heroes of our own stories. I’m also from a military family. My mother was a captain in the military, both of my grandfathers served in wars, so any time a military character comes my way, I give it extra reverence.”

It’s a character like Liam Neeson in “Taken” (2008) or Hugh Jackman in “Prisoners” (2013).

“The fact that we got to explore what it would be like to go looking for a loved one that’s gone missing, what you’d have to do to even get a lead on where they might be, what lines would you cross and what would you do if you came face to face with the people that took them?” Kittles said. “How does that change you? Where does your moral compass go?”

Playing the gangster’s daughter Lola is talented rising star Libe Barer.

“There was a determination, an intelligence, a ferocity inside this very kind, quiet person,” Director Matthew Newton told WTOP. “There was an internal strength that I thought would be great to discover as the movie goes on. She doesn’t walk on screen and you go, ‘Oh, wow, this is a badass.’ … By the end of the film, we discover what that internal strength is.”

Newton previously won the Audience Award at the South By Southwest Film Fest for “From Nowhere” (2016) and directed Julianne Nicholson in “Who We Are Now” (2017).

“When I made ‘From Nowhere’ about three undocumented kids in the Bronx trying to stay in the country and finish high school at the height of 2015, when all those issues came to the forefront, I discovered that if I grounded the story in an issue that meant something to me and made my heart tick, it just made the storytelling a lot more potent,” Newton said.

The slow-burn thriller evolves from an abduction mystery to an action-packed climax, brilliantly using parallel action cutting between two locations for maximum suspense.

“Time is what we use in film, that is our clay,” Newton said, “Having that is a great practical thing, but given the situation that they’re in, there are two enemies. There’s the actual enemy they have to face and there’s also the enemy of making sure that the people they’re trying to save are still alive and well, so they’re fighting both enemies simultaneously.”

Hailed by The Washington Post for “his savantlike ability to name every Best Picture winner in history," Jason Fraley began at WTOP as Morning Drive Writer in 2008, film critic in 2011 and Entertainment Editor in 2014, providing daily arts coverage on-air and online.

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Among The Beasts Reviews

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Among The Beasts. Enlisted to help find a kidnapped child,a former Marine Lieutenant must overcome his own demons to try and save the child. Tory Kittles, Libe Barer.

Among the Beasts (2023)

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