Cryptozoo (2021)

Cryptozoo is the kind of animated film that reminds you animation can be as daring, adult, and idea-rich as any live-action drama—hand-drawn in a lush, hallucinatory style that feels like a lost storybook from the 1960s that’s been left out in the rain and somehow gotten more beautiful. Dash Shaw builds a world of mythic creatures and human longing with such imagination that every scene seems to pulse with discovery, while the voice cast (Lake Bell and Michael Cera especially) keeps the emotions grounded inside the fantasy. The vibe is dreamy but anxious, equal parts wonder and moral unease, as it circles big questions about captivity, exploitation, and what we do to the things we don’t understand. Fair warning: it’s explicitly adult (sexual content, violence, and intense imagery), so it’s not for everyone—but if you want ambitious animation that swings for the fences and actually connects, this one is worth the trip.

Cryptozoo is clearly aiming for an art-house animated fable about captivity, exploitation, and the way politics weaponizes imagination, and it does have striking, hand-drawn imagery and a genuinely original creature concept. The problem is it often feels like a beautiful sketchbook stuffed with big themes that don’t fully connect, so the story can come off scattered, the pacing uneven, and the emotions a bit distant. The animation style is intentionally rough and jittery, which some will find hypnotic and others will find plain awkward, and the explicit sex/nudity and bursts of violence aren’t decorative—they’re blunt and confrontational. If you want a tight, character-driven fantasy or something cozy and wondrous, this probably isn’t your night; if you’re up for a messy, provocative animated mood piece, it may still be worth the ride.