FLOW Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Gints Zilbalodis.
A cat’s home is devastated by a giant flood, and as the waters rise it finds refuge on a boat populated by a number of other animals. The cat shares the boat with a dog, a capybara, a scavenging ring-tailed lemur and a majestic white crane. As the boat moves across unfamiliar landscapes there are signs of a lost civilization. The landscape is also adorned with lots of statues dedicated to cats, which gives the film a surreal and mystical quality.
There is something of The Incredible Journey about this Oscar winning animated film from Latvia as it explores themes of friendship, survival, community, environmental destruction. Flow also serves up a sort of metaphor for the experience of refugees adrift in an unfamiliar world unsure of what the future holds for them and who they can trust.
Flow is the sophomore feature for director Gints Zilbalodis, an award-winning filmmaker and animator who has directed a string of short films. But unlike the family friendly animated films from Disney and Pixar there are no cute talking animals here, no glib one-liners delivered by an A-list vocal cast. Rather Flow is basically a silent film with the only sounds coming from the animals themselves and the naturals sound of rain, rushing water and wind.
An evocative music score composed by Zilbalodis and Richard Zaupe accompanies the action. The sound design immerses us in this world. Zilbalodis’ minimalist approach to the material was largely inspired by the cinema of French auteur Jacques Tati and by his own 2012 short film Aqua, in which a cat overcame its own fear of water. Audiences may become emotionally involved with the plight of the cat and his fellow travelers as they drift along.
Zilbalodis and his animators spent five and a half years crafting the film. The animators studied animals at zoos to help them with their realistic depictions, and their attention to detail is superb. The animation of the surrounding environments is beautiful and realistic.
Flow is undoubtedly a visually impressive piece of animation. However, despite a running time of just 85 minutes, Flow nonetheless seems like a good short story stretched out to breaking point.
★★☆
