Animals ending breakdown: The kidnapping scandal changes the course of Mark’s campaign

Animals is Netflix's latest crime thriller film directed by Ben Affleck. It follows the lives of Los Angeles mayoral candidate Mark Kimball (Affleck) and his wife Abigail (Kerry Washington), after their son Denny is kidnapped. The film reveals that Denny was kidnapped when he went out for trick-or-treating with the Kimball nanny's son Hector. The nanny was begging Abigail to hire her husband Ramon, an undocumented immigrant, to work at the house. Since Ramon had a bad reputation that could hurt Mark's campaign, Abigail refused.

According to The Cinemaholic, Animals revealed that Mark had churned almost all of his savings into his Mayoral campaign, which not only left him broke but also impacted his marriage to Abigail, who was having an affair with a man named Ron. Mark's campaign manager suggested winning the trust of the Latino community, who could tip the outcome in his favour.

Mark's life took a turn when he received a phone call about Denny's kidnapping and a ransom for seven million dollars, which changed the trajectory of his life.

Animals ending breakdown: Who is Dayle Burton?

A still from the movie (Image via YouTube/Netflix)

Denny's kidnapping is at the heart of Animals. The Kimball family's lives took a turn when Denny was kidnapped and the kidnappers demanded 7 million dollars as ransom. While Mark was desperate to bring his son home, he had poured most of his savings into his campaign and was too broke to pay the kidnappers. In this desperate time, Mark's campaign manager, Sam Allison, suggested bringing in stone-cold fixer Dayle Burton. Dayle was an independent broker who ran an underground operation. She offered the full ransom only if Mark agreed to full payback with an additional $1 million+ fee.

Dayle's arrival changed Mark's perspective on people. She practically manipulated him to extort money and said that humans are like animals who can tell stories. Mark's personality was in stark contrast with Dayle's practicality, which led to a chain of events that completely changed Mark's life.

The movie took a turn when Denny returned home, safe and sound. Mark and Abigail realized that Ramon's son, Hector, was kidnapped (not Denny). Since Dayle was already at Mark's house with the money, she suggested killing the kidnappers before they ran away with the money.

How is the kidnapping plot solved?

While Dayle's plan seemed foolproof in Animals, things took a turn at the drop-off site. Dayle misread the number of kidnappers, who gained the upper hand and one of them even fatally shot at her. With Dayle's plan out of the picture, Ramon gunned down the kidnappers and rescued his son Hector.

Mark used Dayle's death to rewrite the narrative and turn his life around. The film shows that Dayle was still alive when Mark spotted her but he chose to turn his back on her. Mark channeled Dayle's advice and turned her most vulnerable moment into a golden opportunity, just like she had taught him earlier in the film.

With Dayle dead and Ramon already executing the kidnappers in Animals, it was the perfect opportunity for Mark to turn the kidnapping plot into a useful weapon for his campaign. Additionally, Mark had access to Dayle's seven million dollars, with no obligation to return it. Since Dayle operated alone, Mark kept her money for himself, without facing any consequences.

How did Animals end?

Dayle's money and the kidnapping incident helped Mark win the Mayoral election in Animals. While he pumped Dayle's money into his campaign, he painted himself as a hero. He rewrote the kidnapping scandal by lying to the whole world. Mark falsely claimed that the kidnappers targeted Ramon's son Hector and that he risked his life to save him by gunning down the three kidnappers. By omitting Ramon's efforts in rescuing his own son, Mark painted himself as Hector's saviour and became a hero in the eyes of the Latino community. As a result, Mark won the election and became the new Mayor of LA. Additionally, Denny's supposed kidnapping brought him closer to Abigail and they reconciled.

While Animals concluded with Mark's victory, Ramon ended up with the short end of the stick. In exposing the kidnapping scandal in front of the world, Mark intentionally brought attention to Ramon and his family. By the movie's end, Ramon's status as an undocumented immigrant was exposed and he had no choice but to return to Mexico with Hector. While Mark ended up enjoying real power, Ramon and his family paid the real price.