FilmSnobReviews

Title: Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken
MPA Rating: PG-13
Director: Kirk DeMicco, Faryn Pearl
Starring: Jane Fonda, Lana Condor, Toni Collette
Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins

What It Is: Ruby Gillman is very sure she’s VERY different from all the other resident of Oceanside, where she lives. It isn’t because she’s “Canadian” as her parents would have you believe. It is because she’s a literal Kraken living on land. When she finally does go into the ocean she discovers the world her mom hid from her. Her world. A world that she’s royalty in. Still…her biggest concern is getting to prom and maybe not embarrassing herself.

What We Think: This isn’t anything exciting or new in the animation genre and coming out this year was a death knell for it considering the caliber of animated film we’ve seen this year. From Nimona to Spider-Verse to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem animation has absolutely slapped. This just isn’t in the same league as those films. Disney has a film coming out later this year and I don’t expect it to be even as good as Pixar’s Elemental. This never stood a chance. It’s story is generic. It’s style is very run of the mill. The script while okay isn’t anything to writer home about and if you’re going to stick to very basic CG for your animation at least make the film somewhat interesting.

Our Grade: C-, Wrong time for this film to come out. Had this hit in 2017 or before it probably would’ve been great or at the least bit good enough. Now. Post Spider-Verse…now the gloves are off and animation is and can be many things and look many ways. Disney…you gotta catch up. Not all your films have to look the exact same. Do something, do anything different. Don’t do what Dreamworks did with this film. One that found no success doing so.