By John Corrado

The 2024 Toronto International Film Festival ran from September 5th to 15th, more information can be found right here.

In his second animated feature Flow, following his 2019 debut Away, Latvian director Gints Zilbalodis captures the wordless saga of a group of animals trying to survive a flood on their island. The creatures are led by a curious, solitary cat who is learning to play with the other animals, including a happy-go-lucky dog, a regal secretary bird, a lemur, and a capybara.

The most impressive aspect of Flow is how Zilbalodis authentically captures animal behaviour without making them talk, using the universal language of animation. There are slight anthropomorphisms, but these creatures mostly behave as they would in the wild, a conscious choice considering how most animated films would turn them into comic relief sidekicks. There are playful moments here, but Flow also serves as a full-on adventure movie, as the animals seek higher ground and try to survive together on a precarious boat.

In several set-pieces, we see the remnants of a human civilization that seems to have been wiped off the island entirely, the lack of answers about what happened to them adding an eery, intriguing quality to Flow. The film features gorgeous animation by Zilbalodis and his team, as well as an enchanting musical score composed by Zilbalodis and Rihards Zalupe. It’s an impressive artistic achievement that deserves to find a wider audience, and would play as an interesting companion piece to The Wild Robot.

Film Rating: ★★★½ (out of 4)