Dogs have long dominated the narrative of heartwarming human-animal bonding films, with Kevin Costner voicing one in The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019) and Josh Gad in A Dog's Purpose (2017). But now, the humble octopus gets its turn in the spotlight with Netflix's Remarkably Bright Creatures, a film that proves cephalopods can be just as quaint and sentimental as their canine counterparts.
Adapted by director Olivia Newman and writer John Whittington from Shelby Van Pelt's 2022 bestseller—which sold 1.4 million copies largely through word-of-mouth as a comforting read—the film plays it safe, leaning heavily on Dickon Hinchliffe's whimsical score to evoke emotion. The story is narrated by Alfred Molina as Marcellus, a highly intelligent octopus living in captivity in the quaint Pacific Northwest town of Sowell Bay. Marcellus speaks in gentle, philosophical tones, noting that “to be at their mercy is humbling.”
The town is populated with harmless eccentrics: a convenience-store owner (Colm Meaney) who is a former Grateful Dead fan, a lone millennial (Sofia Black-D'Elia) running a paddleboard business, and older women (Kathy Baker, Joan Chen) who knit and gossip. The most notable eccentric is Tova (Sally Field), the aquarium's night cleaner, who saves Marcellus's life, leading to an unlikely cross-species friendship.
While Marcellus is meant to serve as a spiritual mirror for Tova—an aging woman grappling with loss—the film shies away from deeper exploration of grief. Instead, it introduces Cameron (Lewis Pullman), a struggling musician searching for his father. Tova and Cameron enact a predictable intergenerational bond: she is meek and fussy, he is aimless; she teaches him to chip gum off floors, and they help each other find romance. Field and Pullman compete in earnestness, but the dynamic feels forced.
Marcellus, despite his wisdom, is largely sidelined. He observes that Tova has “a hole” in her heart that Cameron might fill, but his role is reduced to slapping his suckers on the glass and lamenting human communication skills. The film's grand solution becomes obvious well before the climax, and Marcellus's only meaningful interference comes late. For much of the runtime, Tova and Cameron use him as an unwilling confidant, and the octopus disappears from the narrative for extended periods. It's an affront to be sidelined in one's own story—the octopus population must be furious.
Dir: Olivia Newman. Starring: Sally Field, Lewis Pullman, Joan Chen, Kathy Baker, Beth Grant, Sofia Black-D'Elia, Colm Meaney, Alfred Molina. Cert 12, 113 minutes.
Remarkably Bright Creatures is streaming on Netflix.
