Ben Affleck directs and stars alongside Kerry Washington in Netflix’s new kidnapping thriller Animals. Actor-director’s listless LA-set crime thriller makes for a surprisingly anonymous effort and one that feels very similar to many other, better filmsBen Affleck has pushed through multiple Hollywood comebacks, at least one predicated on his facility behind the camera, directing Boston-based thrillers both artistically ambitious (Gone Baby Gone) and juicily crowd-pleasing (The Town). Key points and original sources are listed below.

• Ben Affleck directs and stars alongside Kerry Washington in Netflix’s new kidnapping thriller Animals. Unfortunately, the star-studded movie is a shocking misfire.S1

• Actor-director’s listless LA-set crime thriller makes for a surprisingly anonymous effort and one that feels very similar to many other, better filmsBen Affleck has pushed through multiple Hollywood comebacks, at least one predicated on his facility behind the...S2

• Remaking Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 classic Japanese kidnap drama High and Low was a good idea, and last year Spike Lee did exactly that with his own homage to the master in Highest 2 Lowest, a contemporary update set in the music business in New York City and star...S3

• The director of "Argo" and "The Town" also stars as an embattled mayoral candidate in an LA kidnapping movie that lacks the visual flair and propulsive storytelling of his other work.S4