A magical animated movie without words, just animals and visuals.
How would a black cat, a capybara, a yellow lab dog, a white secretary bird, and a lemur actually survive in a flooded area on a boat? How would they react toward each other? And how would the journey change their outlook on life? That’s what I was thinking when I was watching the new Latvian animated feature “Flow.” And the fact that these animals are not spoken by movie stars, voice actors, or anyone for that matter makes us acknowledge that the film likes resemble reality, but also allow these animals to connect and be versatile.
The director Gints Zilbalodis (“Away”) takes us to a forrest that gets attacked by a tidal wave and everything is going underwater fast. From a small house to a giant cat statue. And lucky for the animals in this odyssey, there are some sailboats to help them get through, as well as some rain water and bananas for sustenance. And this must be one smart black cat, if it’s able to steer the boat.
When “Strays” got the R-rating, it had to feature comedy stars relying on the obligatory cursing and gross out dog jokes just to make these canines funny. And we also get animated movies like “The Secret Life of Pets” or “Smallfoot.” And all of them deal with the cliche that the humans and animals can’t understand each other. And in “The Wild Robot,” the robot was able to learn their animal language, which is why we got to hear voices from the likes of Pedro Pascal and Catherine O’Hara.
“Flow” chooses not to have these animals talk or have their clichés, even though their animal instincts come in. It’s okay to take a break from the talking every now and then. And I was also thinking about my sister’s dogs Kona and Remy. How they react towards bunnies, cats, seals, and whales. How they sniff new places. And how they go about their lives. I’m not sure how they would handle being on a boat with different animals. But let’s not focus on the real world too much.
It’s the visual world of this movie that’s most exhilarating. The animation was rendered by the software Blender, and it almost has that video game quality, except with more attention to detail.
The water, for example, allows us to see how the cat swims around and tries to get some fish to eat. The flooding sequences are fast moving and often haunting through the right perspective. And there’s also a whale that crosses paths with the cat every now and then. At least I think it’s a whale because of some additional fins.
We have a lot to think about on this journey and what comes out of it really delights us. There’s also some whimsey like the lemur bringing his junk along, and even that creature looks delightful with the eyes and flexibility. And most importantly, there’s a strong sense of kindness and loyalty within these animals that really has your heart warmed.
“Flow” is a small film (running for 84 minutes), but it has a big heart and a lot of appeal. I’m pretty sure kids will be seeing “Moana 2” over this, but if you do get the opportunity to see “Flow,” you will not forget it.
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