A wise and occasionally snarky octopus is charming some critics while leaving others a bit seasick. Remarkably Bright Creatures, the new Netflix adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt’s bestselling novel, follows Tova (Sally Field), a grieving widow who forms an unlikely friendship with Marcellus, an octopus voiced by Alfred Molina, and Cameron (Lewis Pullman), a struggling young musician. While critics are praising Field and Pullman’s performances, some find the movie overly sentimental, as reflected in a Rotten Tomatoes score of 74% and a 57 rating on Metacritic.
Here’s a sampling of what the reviewers are saying:
The Good
While Matt Goldberg at The Wrap acknowledges that the film’s saccharine tendencies occasionally get close to Hallmark territory, he finds Olivia Newman’s direction and the performances elevate the material into something genuinely moving. “There’s a gentleness to Newman’s direction coupled with the dulcet tones of Molina’s voice that gives Remarkably Bright Creatures a warm, soothing feel.”
Goldberg especially praises Field, whose performance grounds among the more fantastical elements. “While the direction is solid, the heavy hitter is Field, turning in yet another winning performance in a career filled with them,” he adds. “In lesser hands, Tova is just a sad lady helped by an octopus, but Field is so good you immediately accept that a CGI mollusk is her pal.”
For Angie Han at The Hollywood Reporter, the film succeeds largely because of the chemistry between its stars. Han describes Field and Pullman as “two reliably endearing performers who are somehow even more winsome together.”
“For all of Remarkably Bright Creatures’ limitations and contrivances, the actual bond that forms between its two human souls feels sincere and organic,” she continues. “It comes down to the lead performers and the crackling chemistry between them.” Han also praises the film’s tone, writing that its “gentle sense of humor and depth of feeling are enough to sweep you away on a wave of emotion” and calls it a “tearfully touching drama.”
Meanwhile, Lindsey Bahr of the Associated Press calls the adaptation “respectable and heartfelt,” writing that it “is respectable and heartfelt, a very straightforward page to screen interpretation that gets the job done and the tears flowing thanks to strong performances by Sally Field and Lewis Pullman.”
The Meh
Yet, not every critic was won over by the film’s earnestness.
At Variety, Guy Lodge dismisses the movie as “A hokey pileup of intersecting destinies and cornball coincidence.” Still, even Lodge acknowledges the appeal of Field’s performance, writing, “At any rate, this is the most snugly tailored leading vehicle Field has had since 2015’s Hello, My Name Is Doris, with its charms heavily reliant on her signature balance of frazzled maternal empathy and can-do pluck.”
And while Ben Kenigsberg of The New York Times admits “being cynical about a wise-octopus movie is probably unfair,” he ultimately found the film lacking momentum, adding that “being bored by it isn’t great, either” describing the adaptation as “a bland and sluggish feature.”
