The Legend of Ochi Review: Creature Adventure Draws a Callback to '80s Kids Tapes
Copyright © A24, AGBO, Neighborhood Watch, Encyclopedia Pictura, Year of the Rat
Title: The Legend of Ochi
Director: Isaiah Saxon
Release Date: January 26, 2025 (Sundance), April 18, 2025 (United States, Limited), April 25, 2025 (United States, Wide)
It is so rare for films to use as little to no CGI as possible. 2025 is becoming a season of live-action kids' films, like A Minecraft Movie and Lilo & Stitch (2025), that explode the box office using the special staple. One film that not a lot of people know about, The Legend of Ochi, relies more on puppetry than they do on CGI. Set against a budget of $10 million, this movie earned only $4.7 million from theatergoers, marking this movie as a box office flop for two reasons: the reliance on puppetry and it being an original story. Critic and audience reviews were mixed to positive about the movie. Some of them did not like the depth, but overall, they liked the visuals and creature design of the world. When A24 plans on using as little CGI as it can, The Legend of Ochi turns out to be a visually and deep-down fantastic tale about an entirely original creature.
It is so rare for films to use as little to no CGI as possible. 2025 is becoming a season of live-action kids' films, like A Minecraft Movie and Lilo & Stitch (2025), that explode the box office using the special staple. One film that not a lot of people know about, The Legend of Ochi, relies more on puppetry than they do on CGI. Set against a budget of $10 million, this movie earned only $4.7 million from theatergoers, marking this movie as a box office flop for two reasons: the reliance on puppetry and it being an original story. Critic and audience reviews were mixed to positive about the movie. Some of them did not like the depth, but overall, they liked the visuals and creature design of the world. When A24 plans on using as little CGI as it can, The Legend of Ochi turns out to be a visually and deep-down fantastic tale about an entirely original creature.
Summary
"A young girl learns to never go outside after dark because of reclusive forest creatures known as the ochi. However, when a baby ochi is left behind by its pack, she embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to reunite it with its family." - Google
"A young girl learns to never go outside after dark because of reclusive forest creatures known as the ochi. However, when a baby ochi is left behind by its pack, she embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to reunite it with its family." - Google
Reasons
What The Legend of Ochi excelled with are the impressive puppetry, simple worldbuilding, and touching story. Don't say I'm joking when the Ochi were actually puppets and not CGI-made. Even if it was hard, the hard work put into making them move and talk was astonishing. Besides all that work, the designs were crafted to look real. Going further from the puppetry, the worldbuilding is well-shot. It does take place in Carpathia, an island from Romania, the movie has more than that. From the movie, you can get lush forests, tall mountains, smooth rivers, and Ochi's habitat. Not only were the puppetry and worldbuilding impressive, but the story is a heartwarming adventure. It uses the classic adventure structure that draws inspiration from other films like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and The Dark Crystal. The interactions between Yuri and the baby Ochi make the story nothing more than adorable.
Other things that The Legend of Ochi made so well are the raw cinematography, artistic dialogue, and emotional acting performances. Because the movie has pretty settings, the camera crew made beautiful shots in so many scenes. Particularly, the ending is the one that looks the most wonderful out of all. Alongside the great cinematography, the dialogue is full of artistic depth. Instead of just relying on long conversations, it uses sound and movement to convey what the characters are saying. However, the characters did have an awesome line or two. Last, the acting performances are both realistic and poignant. Helena Zengel, cast as Yuri, delivered a performance of a curious and determined protagonist. This movie also has other stars, such as Finn Wolfhard as Petro and William Dafoe as Maxim, are also worth watching for their fear and intensity.
Well, The Legend of Ochi made it to the mark of amazing, but the only problems shown were the supporting character development and how it takes it a bit too far on maturity. The only characters that did not have enough development were Maxim's students. In the end, their redemption lacked any focus to resolve the movie. Also, I know I may be a bit harsh because this is a movie meant for older kids, but it does take it too far on the mature tone. Throughout the whole movie, two sh-bombs were in, and the writers could have just had only one for the kid audience to hear and forget about.
Conclusion
Made with mostly puppetry and a little bit of CGI, The Legend of Ochi is an adorable modern attempt at the '80s fantasy adventures from childhood. Similar to other original kids' movies, it's sad to see that this movie flopped for not relying on any AI or any adjacent tool, just to be beaten by A Minecraft Movie or Lilo & Stitch (2025) at the theaters. A24 really did make an amazing movie with all those prop sets and heartwarming story. It shows that while A24 can make beautiful visuals, they are also experts at writing their stories to fit any genre, including the kids genre. No words left besides "go see this one" for your recommendation.
Comments
Post a Comment