Song of the Sea

"My son, remember me in your stories and in your songs. Know that I will always love you, always."

“Song of the Sea” is a 2014 animated film based and made in Ireland, and is about how a young boy, who lost his mother at a very young age, finding out his mute sister is a selkie (a seal-child), who must find her voice and save others like her from a goddess. As you can probably tell, the Irish folklore vibe is very strong. That actually leads up to one of the film’s pros: the folklore style is incredibly well-done. The tone is just so strong at times, so it ends up feeling like a complete passion-project (or a film that is filled with hard work).

To complement this Irish folklore tone is the animation. Oh, the animation. The illustrations in this film are lush, well-crafted, and, overall, a feast for the eye. Even if somebody didn’t like the film as a whole, they would most likely admit that the animation is good. Regarding more “standards” in an animated film, the music is quite fitting. One song especially (that features varying vocals) is, frankly, beautiful. Overall, both the animation and soundtrack completely complement the Irish folklore tone.

The character arcs were surprisingly good as well. What I mean by “character arcs” is that we see the characters start at a clear point A, and finish off at a clear point B. Now, lots of films have things like this, but “Song of the Sea” loves to make this distance from point A to point B logical, exciting, and satisfying, leaving you content with how the story ended.

Now, the film isn’t completely flawless. As I mentioned earlier, the Irish tone is good for the most part. However, the exception is this: for a portion of the first act, the tone is inconsistent and borderline jarring. It’s just that it feels like the film didn’t know what it was trying to be for a portion. The second con deals with the English dub. Even though the voices fit their respective characters, the child actors kind of falter from time to time (and sometimes in crucial story-moving scenes). Other than these few-and-far-between moments, the voices are well realized.

7/10- “Song of the Sea” is a delightful folklore treat. Filled with luscious animation, fitting music, and good character arcs, this film is sure to delight both children and adults alike. With only two noticeable flaws as well, “Song of the Sea” deserves its score of 7/10.