Flow

The Latvian animated Golden Globe-winner Flow is set during a catastrophic flood as a meek cat and a rag-tag bunch of animals survive against all odds. As the survivors brave the waves in a makeshift boat, Flow acts as a take of Noah's Ark without the humans.

A mature animated drama with realistic non-speaking animals. Despite being a family-friendly animated film, Flow rests on a mature sense of realism. The animals have their silly, little moments even in the face of disaster. A capybara is a standout character as it rests with zen-like bliss sailing on turbulent waters. Then, there's a kleptomaniac lemur who hoards whatever junk he can find from the submerged ruins. But Flow also doesn't rely on any exaggerated mannerisms for its animals. Its lead best exemplifies this, a wide-eyed cat who can curl up in the slightest sense of danger. Writer and director Gints Zilbalodis isn't concerned with making a Disney-fied comedy with talking animals who turn into a wholesome adoptive family by the film's end. Instead, the Latvian animator and his crew are fixated on animating the animals to the most real detail possible, leaving behind any over-the-top expressions or force-fed cutesy moments. We live in uncertain times of global warming when a second Biblical Flood seems imminent. And come what may to humans, nature would be affected with the same (or arguably worse) level of intensity and loss. It's this intensity and loss that Flow aptly captures. Zilbalodis is also on his A-game as a co-composer with Rihards Zaļupe. Heavy on percussion and meditative string melodies, the resulting score captures both the atmospheric terror and the tear-jerking emotion of Flow.

Studio Ghibli-like emotion but with modern Blender animation. Despite its cynical undertones, Flow has its chuckle-inducing moments. The aforementioned capybara and lemur provide much of the comic relief. But despite its deep-seated realism, Flow is also undeniably masterful in visual terms. Rendered completely on the free-to-use software Blender, Flow's animation is fluid and immersive right from the opening frames. While IMAX-level disaster movies continue relying on overused tropes with substandard effects, Flow's animation is as fluid as its title. The movements of the animals and the multiple perspectives from the boat are captured with seamless intensity. Even the roughest of the scenes don't feel that rough. And while you feel deeply for the animals making it through the towering waves, you can't deny that there's a tragic beauty in watching the watery carnage unfold. If you need a break from loud-talking animals and a survival movie with a lot of heart, look no further beyond Flow.