Remarkably Bright Creatures

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES 🐙 (2026)

For a debut novelist, Shelby Van Pelt has pulled off something most writers spend entire careers chasing.

Her first novel, REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES, became an international bestseller, landed on The New York Times Best Sellers list multiple times, built a massive word-of-mouth following, and has now been adapted by Netflix into a global feature film hit currently dominating streaming charts.

Not bad for a first book.

The story follows an unlikely connection between a grieving elderly woman, a directionless young drifter, and an extraordinarily observant octopus who sees more in the people around him than they see in themselves. That story is told through the perspective of an aquarium octopus (voiced with dry brilliance by Alfred Molina) who spends his days silently judging, and observing, the humans wandering past his tank. Most of them annoy him. One of them doesn’t: Tova Sullivan (Sally Field), the aquarium’s late-night cleaner.

Tova is a hardworking elderly woman who has become increasingly reclusive from the world around her. After suffering a minor injury, she’s forced to take time off work, passing the reins over to a drifter who only takes the job for the money so he can eventually get back on the road.

What unfolds is an unexpectedly moving cross-generational story about two people who appear to have absolutely nothing in common, yet are both trapped in the same emotional current: grief that has lingered far too long. From there, the film settles into the rhythms of this small coastal town, introducing us to its endlessly charming residents, the warmth of neighbourly kindness, and the emotional wounds people leave buried for years because they simply don’t know how to face them.

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES is easily my feel-good movie of the year.

It’s tender, fun-loving, and deeply heartfelt without ever feeling overly sentimental. The film fully embraces the beautiful awkwardness and messiness of being human through touching cross-generational relationships, gentle humour, and one scene-stealing octopus.

And honestly, it helps that this feels like the ultimate Vancouver movie.

As someone who grew up going on school field trips to the aquarium, spent countless afternoons hanging out at Deep Cove (I’m craving a Honey’s donut as I write this), and then got to watch this film for the very first time at that same aquarium, completely blind to what the story even was, the entire experience felt strangely perfect.

What this film understands so beautifully is the difference between solitude and isolation. Between choosing peace and shutting yourself off from the world because loving people has hurt too much before. That’s where the story excels.

It’s about rediscovering community. About allowing yourself to care again. About accepting grief as something you carry with you, not something that should consume every remaining year of your life.

All of the above works because of Lewis Pullman and Sally Field, who have fantastic chemistry together, perfectly balancing the dynamic of an aimless young drifter and a stubborn older woman who refuses to let him get away with anything. Their relationship gives the film its warmth while grounding it in genuine emotional weight. And the ending absolutely lands.

If you’ve ever watched documentaries about octopuses, you already know how impossibly intelligent they are. Here, the octopus becomes both narrator and quiet observer, watching these fractured human lives slowly collide and ultimately recognizing the remarkably bright creatures hidden within all of us.

This film feels like cozying up with a deeply comforting novel over a rainy weekend—warm, funny, melancholic, and quietly healing. And by the time it reaches its emotional payoff, along with all the unforgettable people you’ve met along the way, it becomes one of the most heartfelt and human feel-good films of the year. 

Enjoy!

7/10 🍿 🎥

Runtime: 1hr521mins

Where: Now Streaming on Netflix

The Richmond Reviewer Remarkably Bright Creatures Review - May 15th, 2026.