Directed By Olivia Newman

Starring – Sally Field, Lewis Pullman, Colm Meaney

The Plot – A tender-hearted widow (Field) who works at a local aquarium finds joy again when she forms an unlikely bond with a giant Pacific octopus (Narrated by Alfred Molina) and a wayward young man (Pullman) who comes to town in search of family. Together, they uncover a mystery that will lead them to a life-changing discovery and restore their sense of wonder.

Rated PG-13 for thematic material, some strong adult language, suggestive references and brief drug use.

Remarkably Bright Creatures | Official Trailer | Netflix

POSITIVES

The most genuinely heartfelt cinematic experiences typically lean heavily on the dependably broad shoulders of a corresponding friendship, and considering Remarkably Bright Creatures is a tender two-hander in dissecting the complexity of human interaction alongside an outsiders perspective stemming from a narrating eight-tentacled creature, it has such a profoundly refreshing method of exploring grief persistently in the confines of its vulnerable characters, in turn supplanting an affectionately endearing appeal that reaches for the emotional impulses as much as its audience reaches for the tissues. Unlike a majority of Netflix-helmed productions that phone experiences in as conveniently and unmemorable as the weekly content model can conjure, Olivia Newman’s direction surprisingly deviates on preconceived expectations with an honesty and maturity not expected from narratives driven between species, without any of the corny consistencies atmospherically, or off-beat shenanigans materialistically, that threaten to compromise the integrity of its emotionality, instead balancing two polar opposite characters at a pivotal point of change within their respective lives, who are otherwise bonded by their isolation factors contributed from the outside world, and considering Newman preoccupies herself illustrating the beauty and uniqueness of human connection, particularly one appraising unmeasurable value to the undeterred resiliency of the human spirit in taking the next step forward on our inevitable journeys. Newman leaves everything in the grasp of her dynamic duo of performances, who seamlessly flesh out the humbled humanity persisting evidently in its deterred characters, but even in approaching the film’s dramatic heft with subdued reservation, she effectively managed to keep even the most fiery and passionate of interactions between them articulated with the kind of gentle grace and sincerity that manage to avoid meddling melodrama in its most materialistically contrived form, in turn sifting through the penetrating traumas of past memories that are utilized vividly with the washed-over tangibles of the movie’s editing practices feeling like overlapping waves that invade abruptly throughout the most unpredictable of moments. This is really the case for the entirety of the movie’s visual execution, as everything from Ashley Connor’s geographically somber cinematography, to Chris Ritvo’s visual effects team, brandishes an appealing influence to the serenity of the imagery that feels cinematic to the at-home captivity of its experience, particularly the latter enacting a photorealistic computer-generated octopus that involved extensive rigging and complex simulations for lighting, water, and even tentacle movement. Because of the impressive level of detail paid towards rendering something so effortlessly disarming towards disbelief, there were frequent moments throughout the film where it legitimately felt like I was watching underwater stock footage, rather than something conjured artificially, especially with how all of these environmental elements are perfected, in order to keep from any of them standing out obtrusively against the others, and in a year that will undeniably have a litany of films vying for the title of Best Visual Effects, during next year’s Oscars ceremonies, Ritvo and his team do more than enough to creatively convince me of their deserving right for such a prize, implementing tangibly influential layers to the movie’s presentation, in ways that feel like the necessary next step in the evolution of bridging the gap between fantasy and reality once more. If these valid components aren’t enough to influence its lasting impression, the aforementioned performances from Sally Field and Lewis Pullman are especially integral to the movie’s benefit, with each of them attaining an effortlessly apparent brand of chemistry that enhances their seemingly unexpected budding connection. In Tova, Field brings all of the delightful delicateness that makes her character and the film such a warmly cozy and sugary sentimental splendor, saving her most defining moments for those pertaining to internal introspection, when Field openly embraces trembling vulnerability to register endearing empathy to her adoring audience, and Pullman, in doing a stand-up job of playing an arbitrarily aimless and isolated young man, quietly desperate to find his place in a coldly confrontational world, quietly proves his capability of conveying honesty in confliction to such overwhelming circumstances along the way, in turn maintaining the actor’s effectiveness to portray characters that feel so isolated from their corresponding worlds. The film is undeniably at its best when these two converge on-screen to produce something deconstructive in breaking down the walls of the mutually contentious interactions initially, but even the exploration of their clashing traumas would fall flat if not for the profound outlining of Alfred Molina narrating their strangely bewildering interactions with one another as a knowledgeable underwater invertebrate with his own established vulnerabilities. While I’m typically someone who loathes overhead narration in movies, as I would rather experience something rather than be told it, Molina’s velvety and sophisticated deliveries feel perfect for a thoroughly documented, highly perceptive species, allowing the audience an outsider’s perspective in trivializing actions that we unload unknowingly everyday, all the while ironically cementing Molina’s second career turn as an octopus, after his iconic portrayal of Doc Octopus in Spider-Man 2.

NEGATIVES

Plenty about this literary adaptation will appeal endlessly to its faithful fandom, but there are some glaringly intrusive components to Newman and John Wittington’s screenplay that detracted significantly from the air of my faithful investment to the experience, beginning with a bit of excessiveness to the supporting subplots, which feel like they take too much time away from the primary dynamics at the movie’s forefront. The single biggest example of these are the romantic interests attached to Tova and Cameron, the likes of whom are great in allowing their characters to decompress what ails them, but not explored with the kind of necessary depth that makes them feel integral to the narrative’s expansion, even against so much usage within the movie’s 106-minute runtime. For my money, the inclusion counteracts everything about the respective isolation factor of Tova and Cameron, that made them connect in the first place with one another, so it makes me wish that their love interests were omitted from the finished product, even if they’re inserted to keep the plot from feeling so redundant in its structure, especially considering the depicted pairs lack any semblance of conductive chemistry to endear them embracingly to the audience, leaving the consistency of its pacing plunged by overlong scenes of the depicted pairings taking away focus its creative duality. This isn’t the only deterring factor to the movie’s framed focus, however, as Marcellus the octopus receives a far less significant influence over the proceedings when compared to his overwhelming usage in the novel of the same name, and considering the plot centers around this observatory creature, the accommodating narration doesn’t feel as valued or vital to the ways it dissects observational exploits, making the character feel less significant, the longer the film persists into its second hour. Being that I already have an aforementioned prejudice against most narration put to film, this isn’t necessarily a problem to the film’s overall appeal, but it does feel like it undercuts the meaningful magnitude of Molina’s performance, as the movie forgets about his character for pocketed moments of time throughout, in turn diminishing the connective bond between Marcellus to Tova and Cameron, which feels like the most compellingly original aspect to a script preoccupied elsewhere. Finally, while I expect to be alone in my thoughts about the twist ending, I felt its spontaneous convenience took away from an engagement enhanced by authenticity, making it feel like tacked-on notes to a plot lacking such a significant climax to its finished product. As previously articulated, I understand that it’s a corresponding element to the novel that predated it, but there’s an appealing randomness to Tova and Cameron’s blossoming friendship that speaks volumes to the sparse opportunity of human connection, where their road to one another resides on fate over underlining motive, and while the big twist does attain meaningful value to their dynamic, I liked the ways their bond grew and evolved before this newfound definition specified it, leaving the unnecessary need for labeling raising more honest questions than answers about how it was kept secret for so long.

OVERALL
Remarkably Bright Creatures is a sensitively honest and tenderized tearjerker about the shared road between two unlikely people attempting to find their place in a world that has moved on without them, bonded only by the air of respective traumas whose only alleviating resolution rests on the therapeutic value of human connection. While the film’s focus occasionally revels in the depths of detractingly overstuffed subplots, the hearty humanity of its humbling performances from Sally Field and Lewis Pullman keep the movie beating at all times, in turn supplanting a stinging sentimentality for a rainy day watch, without any of the sticky sappiness that could squander its dramatic undertow

My Grade: 7.3 or B-