Animation Isn’t Only From the House That Mickey Built

Read Time:2 Minute, 46 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
The Sea Beast
–

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Year Released: 2022
Runtime: 1h 55m
Director(s): Chris Williams
Writer(s): Nell Benjamin, Chris Williams
Cast: Karl Urban, Dan Stevens, Jared Harris, Kathy Burke, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Zaris-Angel Hator, Baraka May, Benjamin Plessala, Kaya McLean
Where To Watch: Streaming on Netflix July 8th

Animation is a challenging field to jump into, and that’s made clear by the gap between Disney and everyone else. Even a studio as incredible as Cartoon Saloon doesn’t get the love they deserve for consistently pumping out notable films. While I wouldn’t say this was the best animation I’ve seen this year, it was gorgeous. I would put it right up there with Dreamworks Animation and Sony Animation in terms of quality.

Netflix animation has pumped out some excellent films. NEXT GEN, THE LITTLE PRINCE, KLAUS, and OVER THE MOON are some of the most memorable ones I can think of off the top of my head. Without a doubt, the best part of this film is the connection between the two main characters. Jacob Holland (voiced by Karl Urban) and Maisie Brumble (voiced by Zaris-Angel Hator) have a link that could only be done in animation. The back and forths between the two build the story.

While the film focuses primarily on the magical “sea beasts,” I was slightly underwhelmed with their look. I feel like they were almost “too clean,” which, to be fair, fit the film's visual style but also took something away from them. I’m not quite sure how I would describe it other than to compare it to Dreamworks HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGONS; in that film, the dragons had more depth or texture, which gave them a little more realism in an animated world. I think it may have made them more intimidating, which I feel the sea beasts were missing a bit of.

I’m a massive supporter of all things animation, especially those that aren’t directly tied to Disney. While there have been many classics to come out of that studio, I feel like they have a monopoly on the animation market, making it nearly impossible for others to succeed. Not to mention that it feels almost as though they’ve bought and paid for their wins in awards for a long time.

Director Chris Williams came over from Disney after directing BOLT, BIG HERO 6, and co-directing MOANA. That’s quite the resume, and he also has a writing credit on MOANA and writing THE SEA BEAST along with Nell Benjamin. This is the way to go if you’re looking for a new animation that’s easy to watch and will keep most kids' attention—an epic journey on a small scale for the whole family to enjoy.

For more reviews and my YouTube channel, please visit linktr.ee/Overlyhonestmoviereviews

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Find my social media accounts on most platforms simply by searching Overly Honest Movie Reviews.

I’m always happy to hear from my readers; please say hi or send me any questions about all things movies.