The cinematic masterpiece ‘Flow’ is a beyond beautiful story about life, nature and what surrounds it. The film delves into themes such as isolation, loneliness and solitude around the perspective of a male cat. It was released Oct. 30 2024, directed by Gints Zilbalodis and premiered at the esteemed Sundance Film Festival in Jan. 2024. It is a follow-up to Zilbalodis’ primary work ‘Flow (2019).’
This festival opened the door to many other international film festivals, earning a reputation for its distinctive message. The movie quickly received attention for its unique visual style and elite storytelling. It became Janus films’ highest grossing film in the U.S. with $3.9 million in ticket sales. Not only did it make waves for being a solo film but also for its innovative approach to the world of independent animation.
Diving in, what makes this movie significant compared to its competitors is the fact that it contains absolutely zero dialogue. This is crucial because it almost forces the audience to engage with the film in a more visual way. Without using words, the movie relies on what you can see, music, sound effects and body language to deliver its message. Many might not appreciate the lack of dialogue as it can cause certain viewers to automatically lose interest in the story. Regardless, since there’s no reliance on any language during this film, it becomes accessible to people across the globe with different cultures and backgrounds.
This film also holds many awards for its captivating art style. Last year in 2024, it won the European Film Award for Best Animated Feature Film and the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Animated Film. Both of these rewards honor the best achievements in animated filmmaking. The most prestigious award by far this movie has received is undoubtedly a Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature film in 2025. What makes this award so remarkable compared to the others is because Golden Globes cover excellence in both cinematography and television.
Getting into the actual storyline, the feature film begins with a cat who lives in a cottage in the woods, completely free of human life. What happened to the humans that may have lived in the cottage remains a mystery because it’s not stated. The cottage is soon overtaken by a great flood, leaving the cat with nowhere else to go.
He sees a wooden boat set in motion by a capybara and finds refuge there. The pair set sail to find safety but come across other animals. A lemur, dog and a bird. From there, the group has to battle viscous tides in order to survive, which overall adds to the anticipation of finding land.
The settings in this movie is what is taken for granted the most. The film originally starts in a forest full of life, with butterflies and other living creatures. Animation style plays an enormous role in this due to the stunning lighting each scene provides. Within the forest, an abandoned house lies. Though we don’t see much of this cottage as it was swept by the flood, it is still significant enough to mention. It looks similar to a medieval style cottage and holds antiques inside.
This may have left viewers with questions about who really lived there. Nonetheless, the best setting in this movie was most definitely the boat. The ocean truly is the highlight of this, with beautiful skies, shores and mountains included as well.
Overall, the plot of this film was okay. It was very interesting, not letting us know what was going to happen next. Some may not find this type of movie to watch with family because of the high-attention span it entails. We got to see how challenges can make or break a journey and how to overcome them. It’s a slow movie that gets better as it goes on, making patience something viewers almost need to have before sitting down and watching.