‘Flow’ review: A sublime journey of survival and hope

None of the characters in Flow has a name. There is no need for dialogue either.

Background music accompanies the grunts and cries of animals and birds who behave as they might in nature. No anthropomorphisation infects Gints Zilbalodis’s gorgeous animated fantasy film, which has been nominated for two Oscars.

Humans have vanished from a flooded Earth. The water levels keep rising, forcing a grey cat out of its secure abode into the great unknown.

The doughty feline manages to catch a ride on a boat, making unlikely friends in the process – a goofy dog, a regal secretarybird, a fidgety ring-tailed lemur and a sleepy capybara. This makeshift Noah’s Ark journeys along water-covered remnants of cities and perhaps whole civilisations in search of higher ground.

Zilbalodis’s film, written along with Matiss Kaza, is packed with movement and colour, humour and poignancy. Zilbalodis creates complete emotional investment in the fate of speechless creatures trying to survive a catastrophic event.

The film delicately explores the themes of companionship and solidarity at a time of extreme climate change. Except for a single scene, Flow never makes the mistake of giving the animals and the lone bird human attributes.

The yellow-eyed cat is the film’s hero – or it is heroine? It doesn’t matter. Curious and playful but…

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