The One and Only Ivan
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
We are playing catch up by reviewing films that are a part of the current awards season.
I don’t want to be overly critical about a lovely Disney family film, but here we go anyway. I was prepared to give The One and Only Ivan an even lower rating — and this says a lot because I adore animals and find them amusing and loveable enough to be easily persuaded by them — until I learned at the end of the film that the titular Ivan was a real gorilla, who was used as an attraction in a mall for decades, against his will. I found the film’s attempt to turn his tale into one for an entire family to watch a bit noble: it’s a way to get young kids to realize the importance of what animals may feel when in captivity, without scaring them too much. This was a saving grace for me, because it allowed me to realize why the film was so heavily centred around Ivan and not the other animals, because the film’s priorities were all over the place.
I can’t give it higher than a 3, though, even with the really strong visual effects, cute animals, or fun voices. The story is so scattershot, I don’t even know if it was all from the same script; you could tell me the film’s plot was made up on the fly, and I would believe you. So, Ivan is a gorilla (yep, we’ve established that, already) who performs for ringmaster Mack at a local mall. He is the main attraction, for being a gorilla who can be terrifying and growl really loudly. The acts aren’t doing well, until Mack brings in a baby elephant, who steals the show. Ivan gets jealous, but nothing really comes from that (he supports her during her act). Without spoiling much that happens afterwards, enough stuff just starts and ends, without much coming from it; if anything is derived from a plot point, it’s such a stretch that I pulled a calf muscle during it.
I was tempted to be Bob the dog in this picture while watching The One and Only Ivan, and I have both sleep apnea and insomnia.
Then there’s Mack, played by Bryan Cranston, so I suppose is meant to be the villain of this film, but is performed so sympathetically (with his business not doing well) and with enough heart that I’m honestly confused. The film doesn’t really want you to root against anyone, but rather something (the idea of using animals as entertainment, and removing them from their natural habitats in order to do so), and it doesn’t help with the aimlessness of the entire film. Again, without spoiling, enough happens that just makes me ask “why?” (particularly their big “break” of sorts, as well as the eventual implementation of the real Ivan’s talent for making artwork), since they happen, stop abruptly, things return to normal, or something new happens out of thin air or for no real achieved reason (and any excuse the film makes feels so impractical). When I reached the ending (which is beautiful and moving, to be fair), I wanted this moment to have been better earned; its the only part of the entire movie that didn’t feel confused.
If The One and Only Ivan was a short film, I think it would have worked out so much better. Instead, it’s a simple true story stretched out to an hour and a half. It’s an honest idea, especially with the creative means of taking a real gorilla and turning his tale into one with talking animals for kids to watch. The problem is that the empty spaces used to make this thing into a feature are just so vapid; this is only an hour and a half, and I felt like it was four hours long (I thought the ending was coming up and I still had literally an hour left. I’m not joking). This padding is full of every family film cliche and trope, which makes the film feel so exhausted (and exhausting for me). If you just want a friendly film to have on for a short while, this will do the trick. Otherwise, it’s ironic that it’s called The One and Only Ivan, because it feels like almost every other family-animal film I’ve ever seen.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.