The Details
The Sea Beast (PG) 115 mins
Streaming on Netflix
Directed by Chris Williams
Reviewed by Jen Shieff
Jen Shieff from Tūrangi reviews Netflix movie The Sea Beast (PG)
This image released by Netflix shows Jacob Holland, voiced by Karl Urban, left, and Maisie Brumble, voiced by Zaris-Angel Hator, in a scene from the animated film The Sea Beast.
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The makers of Moana bring a swashbuckling adventure story for younger audiences and the young at heart.
The Sea Beast is a cinematic triumph, featuring fantastic sea monsters with massive tentacles, cannon fire, ridiculously overdressed strutting monarchs and a good-guy gigantic muscle-man who reluctantly befriends an endearing orphan girl who is much smarter than he is. Younger children be warned, there's a bit of worrying to do and a bit of terror to endure.
Most of the action takes place on board a ferocious-looking sailing ship the Inevitable. Captain Crow (voiced by Jared Harris) is a crazed obsessive man with a missing eye and a wooden leg, thanks to an attack by Red Bluster, a destructive creature the size of an island, with lizard-like eyes and nostrils big enough for a man to clamber into.
The driving force of the movie is Captain Crow's determination to hunt down the creature who took his precious body parts from him.
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The Inevitable's crew consists of gutsy, largely androgynous characters, including long-serving first mate Sarah Sharpe (voiced by Marianne Jean-Baptiste), and Jacob Holland (voiced by Karl Urban) who Captain Crow identifies as the one to take over once Red Bluster is captured. A humble fellow, Jacob is surprised and bewildered, perhaps he realises something's amiss?
Maisie Brumble (voiced by Zaris-Angel Hator), is the smart orphan stowaway who has run away to join the crew to seek justice for her parents, part of another group of hunters, who are dead as a result of the actions of evil Admiral Hornagold (voiced by Dan Stevens). Hornagold was appointed by the strutting king and queen to captain the Monarch and bring Red Bluster to a sticky end.
The king and queen founded a dynasty based on fear of sea monsters. Which of the competing ships will subdue Red Bluster and receive the bounty?
There's much more to The Sea Beast than a quest and reward tale filled with heroes and villains. Maisie tells us that heroes can be heroes and still be wrong, and villains may have been constructed by false narratives. Perhaps Red Bluster is not a villain and needs protection, like the environment she would live in peacefully if the hunters would only go away?
The characters Red Bluster and Maisie are heart-stealers and kids will be inspired by Maisie's courage and ingenuity.
The delivery of some of the pirate language jars because it is delivered in a London accent when the film is so obviously set in Cornwall and Somerset, England. But this is just a small grip, overall I thoroughly enjoyed the script by director Chris Williams (Bolt, 2008, Frozen, 2013, Big Hero 6, 2013 and Moana, 2016) and the movie soundtrack by award winning composer Nell Benjamin.
The animation style we saw in Bolt and Ratatouille is firmly stamped on The Sea Beast by former Disney Pixar director Chris Williams. Typical for animated movies, the visual effects, art and animation departments have lengthy crew lists. They've created memorable characters, lush scenery, a dramatic ocean and really good entertainment. More please, Netflix.
Highly recommended.
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