2024 was generous with animation. Moreover, some of the greatest critical and box office hits belong to this genre. But perhaps the project most likely to explore its benefits is Flow, a world to save Directed by Gints Zilbalodis. This is because the story of a cat in the middle of a world without people is more than a fable. It’s also a story that turns the apparent simplicity of its premise into an exploration of love, loyalty, and a sense of adventure. Everything, without a single word. Thus, the film already has a nomination for Best Animated Feature at the 2025 Golden Globes. Especially for telling the world about it. While not completely different from ours, it is original and innovative.
Unlike tapes like Moana 2 or successful Inside Out 2, Flow, a world to saveis more of a visual and scenario experiment. This is done by emphasizing the natural behavior of the characters—all animals—as they journey through what appears to be the ruins of the human world. The film avoids songs, choreography and any other artificial twists to casually reflect its main themes. Thus, its plot becomes increasingly unpredictable until it reaches its touching end.
To carefully analyze this curious prospect, we leave you with three reasons to see Flow, a world to save. From the stylized animation to the risks the story takes while pondering life, death, transcendence and hope. And this is at the center of a story that will captivate both adults and children. The combination that transforms on the film in one of the films to watch next awards season.
An experience designed to amaze
Co-production film Dream Well Studio, Sacreblue Productions And Take fiveinnovates both in the way it tells its story and in terms of animation. It does this by concentrating the weight of its premise into scenes of significant visual beauty and charming characters who, without saying a word, support the complex story. The script by Matisse Kaz and Gints Zilbalodism focuses on a black cat, which traverses a world of empty cities in which nature is everything.
Moreover, simple human presence is a rarity at all levels. The film does not reveal details of what happened or how much time has passed since the extinction of humanity. This allows the setting to be wilder, more radiant and full of life than just ruins. In fact, the film pays special attention to the fact that wildlife has reclaimed spaces and places that were previously occupied by the works of civilization. So now they rise among the weeds, trees and all types of vegetation are like forgotten monuments.
The film carefully depicts this empty world inhabited only by animals, giving some of its scenes an atmosphere of fearless and unknown adventure that surprises. Thus, much of his plot is driven through the setting, which is striking in the visual decisions he makes to delve deeper into the story. From huge empty monuments to streets, highways and abandoned cars – the world in which the characters move. This is rare in animated stories like this..
Without a lot of details, but yes, with the depth of what it offers.
Most of the efficiency Flow, a world to savecomes from the feeling that what is happening in the plot does not require additional details to work. Therefore, he offers only minimal information about his characters, about what happened before. the arrival of any of them or what happens outside of their adventures.
This may seem like a bold resource – especially since it means the script must rely on images rather than dialogue – but in the case of film it makes it more sensitive and profound. The dominance of animals is reflected not in disorder or chaos, but in a distant era that leaves behind some assumptions about what happened. The plot is particularly adept at showing, through the empty houses, flooded buildings, and new relationships established by the animals, that humans no longer inhabit the world. Is this the apocalypse? Natural phenomenon?
Although this premise suggests the possibility of what might have happened, its true interest is not in providing explanations. In fact, he sticks only to the subjects, situations and circumstances that his characters encounter. This allows the film to build its own dynamics. The event – whatever it is – has less significance than hwhat happened is life, decisions and what surrounds its main characters.
Smart use of visual and script resources.
Opting for simplicity, the film plays with several plot twists, apparently spontaneous, that can be explored in its story. So the pursuit of the black cat, the central character of the plot, soon turns into a journey through a dangerous phenomenon. In the midst of this desolate, wild world, abundantly populated by all kinds of creatures, another inexplicable event begins to occur. A flood that threatens the precarious balance in which all the characters live.
As they are forced to save lives and form alliances with each other, the animals explore more complex terrain without becoming humanized. What does Flow, a world to savein an interesting silent film version, with complex visuals and charming and charismatic main characters. A focus on the power of great universal themes such as love, camaraderie and solidarity.making it one of the greatest films of the year.
Source: Hiper Textual
