I absolutely loved this film because (like our scaredy-cat) I went with the flow and witnessed a transcendent experience.
Flow is, of course, about animals versus nature, including their own nature (or aversions to one another and their tendency towards predatory and defensive behaviours).
The thing that stuck with me is that the film is not so much about conquering one's natural fears but learning to live with them through collaboration and co-operation.
It's no coincidence that Flow ends with the image of the animals contemplating their own reflection in the water - their shared experiences has moved them all to self-conscious
reflective thought, or the awareness that they need one another to survive this natural disaster.
As a Latvian American who despises animated films, I have to agree with Daniella, who makes some excellent observations about Flow/Strauma. I initially watched out of cultural loyalty (we Balts are a very tight community) and was surprised and delighted at how engaging the story and visuals truly were. 90 minutes with absolutely no dialogue and no humans? Inconceivable! And yet, Zilbalodis and scrappy crew have created an authentic gem, amdist (and against) the US corporate animation giants of Disney and Pixar. Am I going to buy a t-shirt with the black cat this summer when I visit Latvija? Yes, absolutely and I will wear it unironically:)) Thanks for highlighting the underdogs (or cats).
Your deep dive into this project has piqued my interest and I will find a way to watch the film. Art takes so many forms as do humans and animals. It’s all so glorious … perhaps the words we so often rely on limit our ability to experience since they have already been tied to meaning in every society and culture. This seems a worthy path to ramble down for a bit….
It's a wonderful movie. I wish I had seen it in theaters. Even watching at home on a 50-inch TV, I still felt transported to another world.
And they had just the right amount of anthropomorphization going with the animals. Rather than cranking it all the way up to 100% for Disney animals, this was more like 20% or 25%.
I appear to have an unwarranted aversion to cats.
I absolutely loved this film because (like our scaredy-cat) I went with the flow and witnessed a transcendent experience.
Flow is, of course, about animals versus nature, including their own nature (or aversions to one another and their tendency towards predatory and defensive behaviours).
The thing that stuck with me is that the film is not so much about conquering one's natural fears but learning to live with them through collaboration and co-operation.
It's no coincidence that Flow ends with the image of the animals contemplating their own reflection in the water - their shared experiences has moved them all to self-conscious
reflective thought, or the awareness that they need one another to survive this natural disaster.
As a Latvian American who despises animated films, I have to agree with Daniella, who makes some excellent observations about Flow/Strauma. I initially watched out of cultural loyalty (we Balts are a very tight community) and was surprised and delighted at how engaging the story and visuals truly were. 90 minutes with absolutely no dialogue and no humans? Inconceivable! And yet, Zilbalodis and scrappy crew have created an authentic gem, amdist (and against) the US corporate animation giants of Disney and Pixar. Am I going to buy a t-shirt with the black cat this summer when I visit Latvija? Yes, absolutely and I will wear it unironically:)) Thanks for highlighting the underdogs (or cats).
Your deep dive into this project has piqued my interest and I will find a way to watch the film. Art takes so many forms as do humans and animals. It’s all so glorious … perhaps the words we so often rely on limit our ability to experience since they have already been tied to meaning in every society and culture. This seems a worthy path to ramble down for a bit….
It's a wonderful movie. I wish I had seen it in theaters. Even watching at home on a 50-inch TV, I still felt transported to another world.
And they had just the right amount of anthropomorphization going with the animals. Rather than cranking it all the way up to 100% for Disney animals, this was more like 20% or 25%.