The Legend of Sarila (2013) User Reviews

Not a bad way to pass the time, but I wouldn't have paid money for it.

[duif_holmes · 6/10 · 31 October 2015]

Croolik apparently became a shell of his former self when his sons died. Too bad we never learn what kind of person he used to be aside from a shaman and apparently not evil. Also, the writers have a tendency to blame the whole thing on buzzwords for things that turn people evil without putting too much thought into it. ("You're blinded by pride and ambition!" "Ambition? At this point in the movie I'm just trying to kill Markussi.") But I found myself caring about him anyway.

Markussi's "I don't want to be a shaman" subplot was interesting, but it's pretty much all we know about him. What's his favorite color? How does he feel about his parents being dead? No idea. Sedna mentions something about using his powers for personal gain versus using them for the good of the tribe, but that doesn't really go anywhere either. Again, I found myself caring about him anyway.

We know even less about what goes on in Apik's head. The movie tries to give her some characterization when her mom doesn't want her to go on the journey to Sarila, but since the crow spirit chose her in this ceremony that the whole tribe agreed would determine who goes to Sarila her decision to defy her mother and go on an adventure was really just the obvious thing to do under the circumstances. Depending on how strictly you interpret the criteria she might also fail the Sexy Lamp Test. (Thanks to Sedna and Saya the movie as a whole passes, but the way things are set up it looks like Apik was supposed to be the female lead and they were supposed to be more minor characters.) Again, I found myself caring about her anyway.

Poutulik basically just exists so Croolik has someone to give that amulet to. I'd like to say I ended up caring about him anyway but uh... no, not really. Also, he's a hunter who kills animals - but only off screen. Whenever an animal actually appears on screen the others are all "Oh, don't kill that lemming, he's to small to be worth the trouble." "Oh, don't kill that... caribou?, she's pregnant." I can understand the reasoning behind this, but it's still a bit distracting once you notice it.

Speaking of animals and weird things, the marketing decision - I mean lemming - is a lot more stylized than the humans or the other animals. Which is not all that good for the suspension of disbelief.

Plus there's what basically amounts to a clip show in the middle of the movie. Seriously, why?

Basically, if the writers had put a bit more thought into what really goes on inside the characters' heads, dropped the clip show (and maybe one of Croolik's attempts to kill Markussi) and used the extra time for some more character development this could have been a much better movie. As it is it's not bad, it's just not very good either.

Decent, but boring

[xmaspoophat · 5/10 · 25 February 2023]

This is Canada's first movie. Does that make this a good movie? No. This is not a "good" movie. Does that make this a bad movie? No. If you want the definition of an okay animated movie this is it. The plot is boring and the Shamen's motivation is questionable. The convoluted story for why the Shamen wants to murder the guy in blue who speaks to the animals is because his (the guy in blue) father was on a hunting mission with the father and didn't protect the Shamen's sons from getting killed. Because the blue guy's father did this the Shamen wants to kill the blue guy for being the next Shamen. The animation looks like a Blue Sky animation from 2004 and there are no trees until an hour through the movie. The characters are also quite bland. But! This is the Mona Lisa compared to some other movies. This is not a "so bad it's good" movie, this is the type of movie a 70 year old would buy for their grandchild. This may be nostalgic for some, but looking at this movie with face value all you can see is a boring movie that doesn't have any action until about 47 minutes in and an unusual amount of blood in what could be considered a "Children's Movie". Even as an adaptation of folktales of Inuits from the 1910s, I still don't think it's a good movie. 5/10, it's the epitomy of mediocrity.

Simply Horrible!

[kingtanichi · 2/10 · 9 December 2014]

On the one hand, it's obviously cool that the Quebecois-Canadian film industry can now put out films that look like this. Fifteen years ago, only a few institutions in the world could have amassed the technology, finance, and expertise to put together computer graphic images like this.

On the other hand, however, this democratization of the tools of imaging has, unfortunately, just given more powers of spectacle to incompetent filmmakers who don't have even the most rudimentary idea how to tell a story. This story begins from the premise that an Inuit shaman -- who has gone bad, for badly-explained/justified reasons -- has renounced his ancestral skill set for subservience to an evil god... who nonetheless never gives him any power to do anything about the hateful, unwatchable, noxious, saccharine and awful characters we're supposed to accept as heroes and sympathetic characters. Then at the end, we're supposed to go gooey-eyed because after being stupidly and unconvincingly defeated, he's "forgiven," and thus kinda-sorta redeemed by these horrible "hero" characters who we've spent the last hour-plus wanting to see die... Don't waste your time.

One fantasy that just fails to enchant

[TheLittleSongbird · 3/10 · 29 June 2015]

As a lifelong fan of animation and as someone who has seen Christopher Plummer and Genevieve Bujold give great performances, The Legend of Sarila was always going to be something I was going to see. Plus the idea was interesting and quite unique. Unfortunately, what potential The Legend of Sarila had was marred by generally poor execution.

There are redeeming qualities here. The music score is appropriately rousing and dynamic, giving as much heart and energy as possible in a film that was on the most part in desperate need of more elsewhere. And there are two good voice acting performances. Christopher Plummer is no stranger to voicing villains, having been the best thing about Rock a Doodle and being just as fun in the Babes in Toyland animation, and he brings a menacing and larger than life personality to Croolick, by far the most involved actor in the voice cast. Genevieve Bujold is touching and dignified as Saya, qualities she brought to her definitive Anne Boleyn in Anne of a Thousand Days.

Sadly, for these three good things, The Legend of Sarila fails quite badly everywhere else. The animation is particularly poor, and at worst inept. The colours are very drab, the backgrounds were in real want of more detail(sometimes it was there, but a lot of them were sparse), the landscapes never felt authentic or made one feel transported to the world where the film takes place in, characters move awkwardly, dynamic physical interaction is next to non-existent and there is little to no attempt with interaction with the environment(lack of peril in dire straits, characters looking as if they'd not been wet despite supposing to). The lack of care in the animation would have been forgivable if the script and story had been any good, unfortunately while not quite as bad failures they don't work either.

Narratively, as well as being pedestrian in places, The Legend of Sarila felt very muddled and like there wasn't enough story to sustain the running time. It's thinly plotted stuff, and is stretched with plot points that were potentially interesting and could have given the characters depth but with little done with them, they're introduced but not resolved or properly explored. Especially true to this was with Markussi and his powers. The lack of originality could have been forgiven if the story was executed well otherwise, which was not the case. The script lacks flow and not only does it sound like it's lacking in sense but it's awkwardly delivered too on the most part. It also feels much too safe, depth, humour and emotion are seldom there and any chances with character development were a missed opportunity. There are attempts, sure, but it feels half-hearted and clumsy, like at the end with Croolick but even that felt incredibly rushed.

Regarding the characters, they are one-dimensional and little more than fantasy clichés, even when having an idea that was unique for animation. And apart from Plummer and Bujold, the voice acting is very one-note.

In conclusion, has its redeeming values, but as a whole The Legend of Sarila just fails to enchant. 3/10 Bethany Cox

Turned it off after 15 minutes

[craemac · 1/10 · 25 July 2014]

The trailer made this look like a good family movie. But it falls far short of good...it's terrible. If based on Inuit legends and myths, no effort was made to explain or define anything. Story line was terribly slow to develop and it was quite easy to predict how particular events would unfold. The sound audio was terrible and it proved very very difficult to understand what the characters were saying. . Character development was non-existent... I would recommend avoiding this movie...young children will not understand it and will probably be scared by some of the evil spirits (which just show up and are not explained in any way).

Charming Animation from Inuit Culture

[dreyson · 7/10 · 8 February 2015]

I think a 5.3 rating here is completely undeserving. It's a wonderful re-imaging of Inuit traditions, myths and legends.

The animation is solid and it's true to its source material. The evil spirits could be a little too scary for under 6s, but this story aims for the 8 - 12 age anyhow, and for that age group it's a wonderful adventure tale with a rich respect for cultures.

A nice Sunday afternoon film for the family, so give it a go if it's on TV or rent it. Sure it's not a must own film, but its charming enough and definitely better than many of the animated sequels pumping in hundreds of million into studio pockets.

Pretty awful.

[MonsterVision99 · 3/10 · 4 August 2017]

It's pretty bad.

The animation looks quite good at times, but sometimes it looks horrible, its quite inconsistent in that regard.

The characters, the plot, the pacing, the editing and the voice acting are awful, its just a mess of a movie but its not funny bad because its competently made (well, if you compare this to other awful animated movies).

Honestly, I just watched it because the cover said it was a Frozen rip- off and I was quite surprised when I found out that it wasn't.

It was quite a boring experience, I wasn't really interested in watching it, but it's short so I guess that's OK.

A simple tale of good vs. evil...

[celluloidkiwi · 7/10 · 24 June 2014]

The Clan has been without a steady food supply for some time due to poor relations with the spirit world. It is up to the young members of the Clan to embrace a challenge requiring purity of mind and heart. In this way, they may enter a mythical land and gain what is needed to set the Clan back in good standing with the spirits while bringing old, tiresome hatred out from it's shadows so it can be dealt with openly. While the animation is a bit dated, it lends a charm to this script and is in keeping with both the simplicity of the story and it's target audience. The script is likewise as simple and far-fetched as are the minds of most little ones, but does a fine job of including the whole family from grandparents to grandchildren. The acting is par with the production. It's refreshing to NOT be bombarded with Disney-like gender bashing and agenda crunching. Sadly this film did not enjoy the wide release it may have otherwise shared. Compared to the junk issued from Hollywood that is high in production, low on substance, we have here quality at a minimum cost that won't infect your kids with attitude and avarice. Good, silly fun with a few fine messages for all viewers.

nice

[Vincentiu · 3 August 2014]

a nice movie. exploration of Inuit culture, not very high but far to be boring, useful for kids and a really good animation. the story is basic, the old fairy tale spirit is present, the characters are charming and no surprises . Christopher Plummer is himself and old shaman represents one of great good points of film. the young actors seems be the best choices for characters of adventurers. the only problem is the dialog. who, in many scenes seems be almost fake. sure, it is a movie for children but that not is a realistic excuse for that.the second problem - the good goddess who is not the most inspired drawing. a good point, almost a virtue - the music. short - a nice film for entire family.

This film is boring

[thom_macdonald · 3/10 · 29 May 2020]

It does not have a bad premise but it is so boring that they have to ship it off as a rip off of Frozen to sell. It is not the worst film but do not watch it. They could not even hide the name on the Frozen Land intro, and they thought it would be so boring that the only way to sell is to sell to Grannies accidentaly buying it instead of Frozen

A LOT OF FUN! What this little guys do is AWESOME

[portalespirita · 10/10 · 24 June 2014]

Man, what the hell, I will open up my heart with you guys right here right now.

I was NOT expecting much of this movie, actually I thought it would be pretty crap, I even prepared some beers and some snacks, sure... I thought "I'm really gonna need to feel my belly in order to take the emptiness of this movie" (this thought was good I need to write that, duh, I'm doing it already), anyway... All that bacon with bbq and beer does not hold me any longer and I started to give this movie a chance, those Inuit guys are hilarious, oh my god, I almost threw up (I actually kinda did a little bit on the carpet but it was OK, almost can't tell the difference only get a little bit darker with the taint), when they start to run, man, got to tell you, nobody can stop them! THE ANIMATION IS VERY GOOD, AWESOME QUALITY AND I EVEN GONNA INVITE ALL MY FAMILY FOR THE NEXT SESSION. I know understand a bit more of INUIT culture and Nancy Savard as director? This dude really knows what the is doing, some scenes really keeps you on thinking, oh my god, then you notice that it is just a movie, but sometimes you even lose track of this, you really feel yourself living that, oh my god. Well, not the part of starvation, that part I really did not feel. Enjoy the movie holmes.

Great story, great ending a perfect family golm

[joiningjt · 10/10 · 3 June 2020]

Nothing exceptional or groundbreaking but I gave it a 10 because it was beautifully made and a must see for the family. Not every animated has to be Disney.

A great movie for family of all ages

[huguespt · 10/10 · 19 December 2015]

I don't understand why this animated movie. I am a 52 year old man in Australia from English background and I would hope the indigenous people of whom this movie is about is fantastic. I believe they may be the "Inuit" I sorry I don't know however it is an entertaining movie with great lessons for everyone from 5 up along with what I thought to be a great and entertaining story. It had a villain, a hero, heroin and a love triangle, comedy, love, tragedy and family ties not just immediate family but their wider community. I would hope the people whom this movie is made after are happy with the result, remembering that stories told by people, handed down over many generations may conflict. I still believe that they would be proud of this story/legend brings together a very wonderful experience. It is definitely a movie that parents will be happy to sit and watch with their children, be as entertained as their children and indeed learn some lesson for the younger, maybe be reminded of somethings for the older watchers. I would hope, and I have not found it, but a second movie with more of the indigenous stories/legends that tie in with the main character. I wish more movies were made about all indigenous peoples movies were made, given more air time and that is as I am sorry to say, many of them will never be the same. I have been told that there is no full blood Maori person in New Zealand left, that is sad I think and more reason why we all need to inspire and encourage movies like this, European history is not the only history and we have our legends like "Robin Hood", "King Arthur" UK and so many more which we all know and love, I add this to a favorite and will do more to know these stories/legends and peoples. The animation is good, it is not a Billion $$ budget however even the opening I thought I was watching 3D as it took me over the landscape, so pretty good indeed.

I loved it!

[Gainesa09 · 10/10 · 11 November 2022]

I'm so glad I didn't listen to the negative reviews. I think this movie is absolutely adorable. I don't know much about indigenous culture and folklore, but I'm glad I'm taking the time to learn. I think the characters had depth and quite a few reminded me of people I've come across on my own path.

From the very moment when the tribal shaman rejected the plea of his fellow tribesmen and forcefully said "remember the spirits speak to me" while the rest of the tribe went hungry and had no idea that he was the reason they had nothing to eat due to him upsetting the spirits I knew I was in for a good movie.

The music throughout the film is also really peaceful and made me feel at ease. The story itself is an inspirational one and I'm glad I took the time to enjoy it!

good intentions

[Kirpianuscus · 28 October 2017]

a nice film. noble intentions. Inuit folklore/tradition as interesting support . but something essential is missing. sure, magic, envy, the way who transforms the lead hero. all well known from old fairy tale. but the obstacles are not the essence of adventure. it is the mark of improvisation who defines this animation who remains a nice film but nothing more.