# My Animal (film)

My Animal is a 2023 Canadian supernatural horror romance film directed by Jacqueline Castel in her feature directorial debut, and written by Jae Matthews. Starring Bobbi Salvör Menuez, Amandla Stenberg, Heidi von Palleske, Cory Lipman, Charles F. Halpenny, Harrison W Halpenny, Joe Apollonio, Scott Thompson, Dean McDermott, and Stephen McHattie, the film follows a young woman who is forced by her overbearing parents to keep her lycanthropy a secret, until she begins to fall in love with a figure skater.
My Animal had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, on January 22, 2023, and was released in select theaters on September 8, 2023.

## Plot

One full moon night during the 80's, Heather, a werewolf, transforms for the first time, attacking her human mother Patti and clawing her in the chest.
A couple years later, Heather works with her father Henry (whom she inherited the curse from) at a local diner and plays hockey with her younger twin brothers Cooper and Hardy, while Patti has turned to alcoholism. When trying to get some stuff for her, Heather meets a young woman named Jonny (short for Jonine), a figure skater who just moved into the neighborhood with her father.
While Jonny has a boyfriend, Rick is less than pleasant to her. Heather and Jonny begin to bond and converse, with Heather watching her skate at the local rink. Heather joins Jonny and her friends at a visit to a casino, but as it is a full moon, she transforms soon after she tries heading home, much to her parents’ dismay.
Regardless, Heather and Jonny continue hanging out. During one of these hangouts, Cooper and Hardy sneak into a bar and find the two getting intimate. The twins start distancing themselves from Heather, Hardy acting especially cold.
One night, Jonny takes Heather to her house, where the two have sex. However, Heather implicitly partially turns, disturbing Jonny. After Heather leaves, Jonny stops interacting with her. Heather tries asking Jonny’s father about what happened, but he turns her away.
Eventually Heather is invited to a party, where Jonny tearfully tells Heather they can’t talk anymore. Devastated, Heather has a breakdown back at her house where she is comforted by Patti.
Not long after, Henry dies of a heart attack at work. When she tries sitting with her brothers after giving herself a haircut, Hardy accuses her sexuality of causing their father’s death. Cooper, who reconciled with Heather during Henry’s funeral, fights Hardy in her defense. During this, Heather runs out of the house.
Heather heads to the bar to confront Jonny for her decision, but while doing so is dragged outside by Rick, who beats her. However, Heather transforms during the beating, killing Rick and running off into the woods.
The next morning, Patti bathes and heals Heather, advising her to move out for her safety. Heather does just that, driving off into the night.
In a post credits scene, Otto, one of Jonny’s friends, is being interviewed regarding Rick’s death. He tells the interviewer: “You can’t mess with animals, man. Cardinal rule.”

## Cast

* Bobbi Salvör Menuez as Heather, a werewolf
* Amandla Stenberg as Jonny, a figure skater and Heather's love interest
* Heidi von Palleske as Patti, the overbearing human mother of Heather
* Stephen McHattie as Henry, the overbearing werewolf father of Heather
* Cory Lipman as Rick
* Charles F. Halpenny as Cooper, the younger brother of Heather
* Harrison W Halpenny as Hardy, the younger brother of Heather and the twin brother of Cooper
* Joe Apollonio as Otto
* Dean McDermott as Coach Dutch
* Scott Thompson as Marcel
* Mitch Horowitz as a news reporter
* Graham Millions as slot machine player

## Production

In 2019, the project was selected to participate at the Frontières production market during the Fantasia International Film Festival.
Principal photography took place from February to March 2022 in Timmins, Ontario, Canada.

## Release

My Animal had its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, on January 22, 2023, during the Midnight section. Prior to the premiere, the worldwide distribution, excluding Canada, was acquired by Paramount Global Content Distribution. The film was released in select theaters on September 8, 2023 and on digital formats on September 15.

## Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 73% of 55 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6/10. The website's consensus reads: "Jacqueline Castel's feature debut is an arresting queer and lycanthropic coming of age story that longs for more, but delivers just enough panache to satisfy."