The Legend Of Ochi (2025) Dir: Isaiah Saxon

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There were a number of films from 2025 that I had wanted to see at the cinema, but, for whatever reason, didn't, and this A24 fantasy film was one of them. It was director Isaiah Saxon's debut feature film, and intrigued me instantly with its adventurous-looking story and creative puppetry. When doing the basic amount of research I tend to do before watching a film, I was a little surprised by how mediocre the reviews were, but that only interested me more, if anything, albeit just to see how I would find it.

I thought the creature designs for the 'ochi' were extremely cute, and reminded me of classic films like 'The Dark Crystal', as well as more contemporary creations, such as 'Grogu' from 'The Mandolorian'. I am a sucker for practical effects, and puppeted creatures are no different. The setting for the film was also quite pleasant, although it only really excited me once, with how pretty it was.

The story was a very big letdown for me, however. There were some really enjoyable elements, but the end-product was missing something. It felt a little soulless, as if it were imitating, rather than creating something. The narrative, and the themes it was attempting to reach for, ended up feeling extremely shallow. This was also a criticism that could be levied at the supporting cast - the group of boys were all extremely half-baked, and lacked any significant personality.

I really wanted to enjoy Helena Zengel's leading performance, but I just could not connect with her at all. Her acting, much like a lot of the writing, felt hollow and inauthentic. I kept waiting for something to click into place for her, but it never quite did, unfortunately. She showed signs of something better, but they were not frequent enough to make this anything but a disappointing performance.

Willem Dafoe was entertaining, but his character felt a little one-note, despite the great actor's best efforts to bring his eccentricities to life. It felt more like the character was interesting because Dafoe was playing him, rather than because the character himself was interesting. The quality of acting was there, but the characterisation was not. It felt messy - even his costuming was a little all over the place.

Emily Watson did not have a substantial role in the film, but she did have some memorable scenes, at least. With that said, she didn't quite seem to match the role for me, unfortunately. I wanted to like her acting more than I did, although, I didn't dislike it, I should clarify that much. Finn Wolfhard's character and performance in this film reminded me of that of his character in the most recent 'Ghostbusters' film, of all things - which is to say; he was essentially irrelevant, but the film wanted you to think otherwise. His acting was fine, perhaps a little bit wooden, but that was the least of the film's problems.

Overall, despite its clear potential, I found this to be an extremely disappointing fantasy film, which felt more like a hollow imitation of other, better, films, rather than its own unique adventure. I loved the creature designs, and the practical nature of them, but almost every other aspect of the film was underwhelming, to say the least. For a film that felt like it would be so full of heart and personality, it ended up feeling extremely shallow and empty.