Flora & Ulysses
DISNEY+Surely looking to channel their inner passion for the work of James Joyce, the powerhouse direction of Lena Khan brings Flora & Ulysses to life. More from the villainous corporation of hounds that run Disney, their latest family-oriented offering delivers the bond between human and squirrel. Cute CGI animals will be enough for some audiences, or will at least convince them that it would be placid entertainment for their children. It’s an hour and a half of precious time for rest with the children fixated on witnessing a squirrel receive CPR. Flora & Ulysses has the amicable feel most Disney products do and, shamefully, it is something they are fearful to move themselves away from. An animal that isn’t necessarily domesticated paired with a child actor and a few recognisable faces that need a bit of cash flow, it has all the hallmarks of a project doomed to live in the bargain bin.
Opening with a reminder that Disney does indeed own Marvel and the impossibility of escaping their influence on the modern movie market, Flora & Ulysses depicts the idea that there are superheroes among us, even if they may not show up in the real world. A couple of cutting lines pave the way though, mocking the nerd attitude and comic book lifestyle. It’s up in the air as to where the narrative may be going. Anyone’s guess would be wrong. At times, it feels somewhat similar to Young Sheldon in the sense that the leading characters are caricatures of a time or topic the director wishes to draw from. Other parts feel like an irresponsible idea around sewing the nuclear family back together. Khan doesn’t manage to form either of these themes beyond the planning stages.
With unremarkable diction from supporting characters, both Alyson Hannigan and Ben Schwartz get the rough end of the deal with this one. They clamour for their once-held popularity, the crushing defeat turning their faces pale, their eyes filled with tears. Just one more hit from the Disney cashflow and surely they’ll find their way back to the realms of plausible, good-natured performances. George (Schwartz) is a struggling creative whose inability to believe in himself has him working at a pet store. Phyllia (Hannigan) is also a struggling creative, although her issues come from a lack of focus rather than belief. Either way, the interchangeable nature of these themes and their attachment to each character is, to some extent, futile. There is no need to bother with separating these characters, considering they apply the same fundamentals to the narrative. Bleak conflict is there for the sake of it with seemingly no impact on Flora (Matlida Lawler). What’s worse is the lack of message. All good family entertainment has a message, yet here is a relatively superficial narrative that doesn’t grip the responsibility it has for younger audiences.
Sympathy springs to mind when the credits start to roll. Not just for Khan, who is surely a creative force mired by the safety-first protocol of Disney, but also for Lawler and the remaining cast members who put effort in and received little in return. When relying solely on special effects antics with a squirrel that, for some reason, can backflip over roller skates and strike heroic poses, there needs to be, at the very least, some entertainment behind it. No such luck. Flora & Ulysses is roughly twenty years too late to capture the freewheeling lifestyle of Stuart Little. Fluffy vermin are no longer box office bigshots, which is why this will be buried underneath the other quality content Disney+ can provide.