‘Little Fish’ Review: Do You Remember Love?
#masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main story‘Little Fish’ Review: Do You Remember Love?This sci-fi romance imagines a world with widespread memory loss through the eyes of one couple.Olivia Cooke and Jack O’Connell in “Little Fish.”Credit…IFC FilmsFeb. 4, 2021, 7:00 a.m. ETLittle FishDirected by Chad HartiganRomance, Sci-Fi1h 41mFind TicketsWhen you purchase a ticket for an independently reviewed film through our site, we earn an affiliate commission.Chad Hartigan’s “Little Fish” is set amid a pandemic. Not the one we’re currently living through, but one that raises many more existential questions. Instead of Covid-19, the film’s fictional world is suffering from NIA (neuroinflammatory affliction), which causes a mysterious, mass memory loss.Hartigan (“Morris From America”) and the screenwriter Mattson Tomlin tell the story of a newlywed couple, Emma (Olivia Cooke) and Jude (Jack O’Connell), while jumping timelines before and after NIA, including their engagement in the fish section of a pet store. The film may be shortsighted about the global scope of this disease, but the microcosmic focus allows for a much more emotionally devastating film.[embedded content]Once you’re swept up in Emma and Jude’s romance — it’s not hard, even though the montages veer a little too precious — the skimmed-over science matters little. This is sci-fi rooted more in feelings than fact. Its resonance is similar to “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” though it’s arguably antithetical in plot.The weight of the epidemic is felt through Emma and Jude’s small social circle. First, their couple friends Ben and Samantha are affected (Raúl Castillo and the singer Soko, who contributed to the soundtrack). Then Emma’s mother learns she has it. But the real gut-punch lands when Jude’s memory starts to fade. “They say you can’t forget feelings,” Emma says. But what happens when one party has no recollection of the past that led to falling in love? And if memories shape one’s identity, what does it mean for Emma to continue loving someone who is no longer his original self? The answers are not all there, but the questions keep the film intriguing.Little FishNot rated. Running time: 1 hour 41 minutes. In theaters and on Google Play, Vudu and other streaming platforms and pay TV operators. Please consult the guidelines outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before watching movies inside theaters.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More
