[Rating: Solid Rock Fist Up]
Finding a place to call home, in the twilight years of your life, or even in the prime of your life is a difficult thing for most everybody. Older generations have seen so much and now experience things so quickly, and the younger generation has grown up in a world that doesn’t want to slow down and embrace the small things in life. Together, there should be a balance, and in Netflix’s newest film, Remarkably Bright Creatures (directed by Olivia Newman), three different stories of three unlikely individuals are merged together to make a melting pot of pure joy and wonderment.
Tova Sullivan (Sally Field) is an elderly woman who works as a night janitor at an aquarium in her Pacific Northwest town. She’s told by all of her friends to just settle down and retire, but her peaceful nights at the aquarium keep her going. She befriends an octopus named Marcellus (the voice of Alfred Molina), who Tova returns back to his tank after he tries to make a desperate escape back to his ocean home. A slight ankle injury forces Tova to take some time off to recover.
Which leads the story to Cameron Cassmore (Lewis Pullman), a wannabe musician who is new to town and is hired by the aquarium to fill in during Tova’s leave. Tova teaches Cameron how to care for his work and do it well, even introducing him to Marcellus in order to create a trust between the two. Cameron also begins to bond more with Tova, creating a friendship that works well for the both of them to have a person to talk to and trust in their lives.
Tova, having lost her son at an early age and now having lost her husband, is lost in a world that she’s not ready to give up just yet. She wants that spark of joy back that she lost. Cameron, having recently lost his mother is looking for the clues to know who she was and who his real father was is lost in a world with constant roadblocks. And of course Marcellus the octopus is lost in his personal cages, wanting once again to see the ocean that he called him before his captivity. This is a case where three individuals need one another
Remarkably Bright Creatures is comfort viewing. Both of the main human actors are so well adapted to their roles, it’s one of those “born to play” movies. Sally Field has also been a top notch actress and once again made me realize she is still so damn good at what she does. Pullman as well is one of those actors that has pretty much established himself in Hollywood, and can do no wrong in my book. I think the biggest thing of this is just how well everything turns out. I didn’t care much for the book this is based on, but feel my opinion of it would change now based on hearing and seeing these three misfits come to life on screen.
Christian Ramos is a classic film fan, having had the dream to host Turner Classic Movies for years now. He also has a large amount of Oscar trivia in his head, remembers dressing as Groucho Marx one Halloween, and cherishes the moment Julianne Moore liked his tweet.
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