Only the Animals (2019) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Only the Animals takes place across three main locations: Abidjan, a busy West African city; the snowbound Massif Central region in rural France; and a seaside town near Sète in southern France. These contrasting settings reflect the global reach of the story's web of relationships and crime.

• setting
• locations
• abidjan
• massif central
• sète
• france
• africa

The events unfold in the present day, during the 2020s. Modern technology like smartphones and the internet plays a central role in the narrative, particularly in the online scams that connect characters across continents.

• time period
• present day
• 2020s
• modern era

The Massif Central setting features snowbound rural France with farms and barns. These isolated, claustrophobic spaces become key locations where characters hide secrets and where the story's most consequential events unfold.

• french countryside
• rural france
• massif central
• snow
• winter
• barns
• isolation

Infidelity is the central engine of the plot. Alice's affair with Joseph destabilizes her marriage to Michel, triggering a chain of retaliatory actions. The film shows how private desires ripple outward, leading to devastating consequences for everyone involved.

• infidelity
• love
• betrayal
• affair
• marriage
• jealousy

The film centers on illusion and manipulation, particularly through the Amandine persona, an online identity that exploits trust to extract money. Characters constantly misread one another, leading to escalating manipulation, guilt, and fatal outcomes.

• deception
• illusion
• manipulation
• amandine
• online scams
• catfishing

Snowbound settings and secluded spaces like barns and sinkholes intensify a claustrophobic atmosphere. Characters make choices in secrecy, which accumulate into a fatal crescendo. The film explores how isolation amplifies guilt and accelerates retribution.

• isolation
• consequences
• secrecy
• guilt
• claustrophobia
• snow
• winter

Joseph is an isolated farmer in the French countryside who becomes entangled in Evelyne's orbit and Alice's affair. Haunted by guilt after his involvement in the events, he chooses to hide evidence rather than face exposure, showing how stubborn pride masks deep vulnerability.

• joseph bonnefille
• farmer
• alice affair
• guilt
• secrecy

Alice is an insurance agent married to Michel who pursues a dangerous affair with Joseph. Pragmatic and self-serving, she sets off a chain of events that leads to violence and tragedy, becoming increasingly overwhelmed by the moral fallout of her choices.

• alice farange
• insurance agent
• affair
• joseph
• michel wife

Evelyne is a glamorous woman living in the countryside with her husband who begins an affair with Marion. Her presence haunts the other characters even after her death, serving as the focal point for the web of lies and illustrating the corrupting power of desire.

• evelyne ducat
• glamorous
• affair
• marion
• central character

Michel is Alice's husband who suspects her affair and ultimately confronts Evelyne with tragic consequences. His sense of betrayal transforms into desperate actions, revealing a complex mix of jealousy, guilt, and anger as he seeks the truth.

• michel farange
• alice husband
• jealousy
• betrayal
• confrontation

Marion is a young waitress who pursues Evelyne to the countryside seeking lasting love and stability. She becomes a victim of manipulation and risk as the affair unfolds, driving her to confront the harsh reality of Evelyne's life and choices.

• marion
• waitress
• love
• evelyne affair
• victim

Armand is a young scammer in Abidjan who creates the Amandine persona to defraud Michel. His opportunistic and clever actions catalyze consequences that reverberate across continents, linking the African setting to the French narrative.

• armand
• amandine
• scammer
• abidjan
• online scam
• cross border