Weekend films

'Flow', an animation gem from the future

One of the most powerful animated films of the year is released in cinemas. Also among the new releases is 'Anora', Palme d'Or at the last Cannes Film Festival

by Andrea Chimento

8 November 2024

3' min read

Key points

Anora

3' min read

An example of cinema of the future? This seems to be 'Flow', an animated film directed by Latvian director Gints Zibalodis, here on his second feature after 2019's 'Away'.

The protagonist of the story is a black cat, used to living on his own, who is suddenly forced to give up his independence in order to survive in a world devastated by a terrifying flood. While there is no sign of humans, the arrival of the flood forces him to save himself on a boat that he must share with a colourful group of animals, including a lemur, a Labrador dog, a capybara and a bird.

Animals learn to cooperate, but for the cat it is an extremely difficult challenge.

Presented in the Un certain regard section of this year's Cannes Film Festival, 'Flow' was one of the big surprises of this latest edition of the French kermesse.

It really does seem like a feature film from the future, this film placing us in a viewing perspective directly connected to that of the protagonist cat, playing with subjective and other visual contrivances capable of making us experience this (dis)adventure in the first person.

Both in terms of the eye movements and the aesthetics deployed, this film seems to be a sort of hybrid between the language of cinema and that of VR, as if during the projection we were wearing visors that led us to move our heads left and right to admire the virtual world around us.

“Flow” e gli altri film della settimana
Photogallery4 foto

An extremely immersive experience

The result is a highly immersive experience, as disturbing as it is fascinating, alternating between dazzlingly beautiful landscapes and unexpected dangers.

The environmental and animal rights message is powerful but, more than the content, it is the form that counts in this feature film, which is also about how necessary it is to join forces in order to survive: the group dimension is treated in a simple but effective manner, even managing to wring a few bitter laughs out of the gags that cohabitation between animals produces.

To further emphasise the courage of the operation, it should be pointed out that 'Flow' is a completely silent film, thus relying on a narrative choice that combines the cinema of the past with that of the future.

One of the year's animation gems: not to be missed.

Anora

The week's novelties also include the film that won the Palme d'Or at the last Cannes Film Festival: 'Anora' by Sean Baker, an American director who has made his name with decidedly original films such as 'Starlet' and 'Tangerine'.

Three years after the swinging 'Red Rocket', Baker is back in competition at the Cannes Film Festival with a work that represents perhaps the peak of maturity of his entire career.

The protagonist is the Anora of the title, a girl who works as a stripper in a New York club. In the club she happens upon the son of a Russian oligarch who falls in love with her and ends up asking her to marry him.

In this film, which may be reminiscent of 'Pretty Woman', Baker displays a stylistic and narrative strength even more solid than in his previous works, managing to create a work that is both good entertainment and also capable of entertaining. In the approximately two hours and twenty minutes, not everything is perfect, but the overall design works, even in the alternation between light-hearted moments and others that are undoubtedly darker.

The Palme d'Or may have been slightly generous, but it is an enthralling product that has its strength in a truly engaging montage and an entirely credible cast.