Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken Review

DreamWorks had a great one-two punch with their 2022 releases The Bad Guys and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Their first film of 2023, Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken had a lot to live up to.

Ruby Gillman (Lana Condor) and her family live in the seaside town of Oceanside. There are Krakens who are pretending to be humans. Ruby has one rule she needs to follow: never go into the Ocean. However, Ruby breaks this rule to save the life of a school friend and this draws the attention of her estranged grandmother (Jane Fonda), Chelsea (Annie Murphy), a mermaid pretending to be a high school student, and a local Kraken hunter (Will Forte).

DreamWorks has had a broad approach to movie making, which has led to them producing a wide range of films. They have made films across genres, tonally varied, and catered to all types of audiences. Their previous film was Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and it was one of their best films of its emotionally rich story. It was a hard act to follow and Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken was one of DreamWorks’ lesser films.

Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken aimed to be a female-ordinated animated film. The four main characters were female and were tied together because of their past. The film was a coming of age as Ruby battles high school issues like popularity and finding a date for the dance, experiencing her body changing, and discovering the truth about her family. Because of all of this Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken was a meal with too many ingredients.

Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken wanted to be a puberty story, a family drama, and a maritime fantasy. The story and themes of Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken was a cross of Turning Red and The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea since Turning Red was also a puberty story where an adolescent girl turns into a giant creature whilst The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea was about a girl who didn’t know about her royal undersea heritage. Even audience members who haven’t seen The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea could see Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken as a reverse Little Mermaid, which was amplified by the release of the recent live-action remake. Due to these different storylines, it made Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken into a schizophrenia film.

This multi-genre approach and focus on young characters made Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken an energetic film. One of the first scenes in the film was Ruby’s video presentation to her mother which was filled with frantic editing. This energy was maintained during the first act like when Ruby fantasises about the boy she fancies and how Chelsea introduced herself to the school. This energetic approach ensured that younger children could enjoy it. There were jokes that I did chuckle along to.

One of the more interesting aspects of the film was Ruby’s idealism. It was set up early in the film that Ruby believed prom was a ‘neo-colonialist construct’ and should be boycotted. Even though she went against these ideals regarding the prom, Ruby’s idealism motivated her when she discovered her powers. Ruby was looking for a peaceful alternative to her grandmother’s preparation for war, and her mother avoided conflict by living on land.

Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken had a simplistic art style. This was particularly notable with Ruby and her family since they looked like they were influenced by the ‘CalArt’ style. They smiled like the characters from Steven Universe. Fortunately, there was a fluidity to the animation which was particularly effective for Ruby since she was a flexible character with no bones.

Ruby Gillam: Teenage Kraken was a perfectly decent, inoffensive film for younger children but does suffer from having an unfocused story and ideas.