A Review of Orion and the Dark by Nick Olszyk
Distribution: Netflix
FCC Rating, TV-Y7
OSV Rating, Unrated at the
time of this review
Reel Rating, Five Reels
Disclaimer: Contains Spoilers
At this point, it’s a
tired – though true – stereotype that Hollywood only makes sequels, reboots,
and superhero adaptations, completely negating original work in favor of
familiar and safe franchises. Yet throughout this time, there have always been
original works of great creativity and wonder, even if harder to find. Orion
and the Dark is the most original and heartwarming animated film in nearly
a decade, a masterpiece of cinematic artistry that harkens back to the glory
days of Pixar. It’s still only February, but I may be reviewing the best film
of the year.
Orion (Jacob Trembly)
is an 11-year-old boy with a serious case of pantophobia. He’s afraid
of clowns, bugs, germs, getting called in class, talking to girls, death, and –
most of all – the dark. Not only does he sleep with the door open but multiple
night lights. One night, a storm mysteriously shuts off all these lights
leaving Orion alone with the dark, which begins to speak to him. Oddly enough,
Dark (Paul Hause) is a nice guy and wants to help Orion with his fear. “Lots of
kids are afraid of the dark,” he tells the terrified child. “But you take it to
a whole new level. Spend one night with me, and you’ll see I’m nothing to be
afraid of.” Orion is hesitant, but it’s best not to tempt an anthropomorphic
manifestation of your deepest fear.
Like the ghosts of
Scrooge, Dark takes Orion on a grand tour as he covers the world in darkness.
Assisting him are “the Night Entities,” a collection of nocturnal themed
concepts including Quiet, Unexpected Noises, Insomnia, Sleep, and Sweet Dreams.
My favorite is Insomnia (Nat Faxon), a mosquito-like creature who whispers
intrusive thoughts into your brain just as you drift off. While Orion still
prefers the Light, he begins to appreciate the role Dark has in creation. This
childlike adventure soon takes an existential turn as Dark doubts his purpose,
especially in the face of everyone’s preference for Light. Soon, it is Orion
himself who must save Dark and restore the balance of nature.
Dark is an intriguing
character. He is personified as a large, shrouded figure with glowing green
eyes but is anything but menacing. He is kind, witty, modest, and sensitive. He
reminds me of a golden retriever who wants to show you a really cool hole he
just dug in the backyard. He highlights all the benefits of darkness like
seeing the stars and getting a good night’s sleep. Darkness is also a metaphor
for all the unknown fears in one’s life. For a young person, most of the world
is new, and that can be scary. There’s a poignant scene reminiscent of a classic line from Finding
Nemo where Orion must accept the unknown to save those he loves. It is
impossible to avoid pain, suffering, and the effects of sin, but we can “take
heart, for [Christ] has overcome the world.” Thus, we can face the unknown vigilant
but unafraid.
All this is good but standard
for an animated kid’s fantasy. What is not standard is Charlie Kaufman, the
screenwriter. I have never been a fan of the auteur theory of cinema, but he
is an exception. Every Kaufman film – independent of the director – is a
bizarre but fascinating exploration of existential dread, the true heart of
man, and the unlimited capacity of the imagination. Halfway through the film,
the audience learns that this tall tale is being recounted by a future Orion
(Colin Hanks) to his daughter Hypatia (Mia Brown). She counters that “fear of
the dark is just an evolutionary trait designed to protect us from prey” but
nonetheless insists that he continue. Soon, she inserts herself in the story to
help her younger dad on his quest. When she can’t return to her future home,
her own son from even further in future adds to the story. What emerges is an ever-changing
narrative where each generation includes its own magical take on the story –
which ultimately becomes a tale of how Orion overcame his fear of a class field
trip to meet his future wife, leading to all these ancestors. It’s an extraordinarily
beautiful parable of the necessity of suffering and how God uses our pain the
our greater good. It’s also nice to see an animated film portray a nuclear
family in its proper positive context – several at that.
There are a handful
of filmmakers who were wild in their youth only to create more traditional, family-oriented
faire after getting married and having children later in life (Burton in Big
Fish, Scorsese in Hugo, etc). So too Kaufman, famous as a crazy,
demented, isolated genius in the Salinger vein now has a film that uses these
creative impulses for the Kingdom. The dark will always be with us, but that is
why we need each other. This is why the good Lord designed the human species to
be conceived in a family – even unto His own Incarnation. Also, Warner Herzog
plays a hilarious cameo – a joke worth the price of admission alone.
This article first appeared in Catholic World Report on February 16th, 2024.
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