As genre fans continue to heal from the label’s proliferation “exalted horror” in the last decade, A24, which defined the made-up prestige subgenre with films like Heir And The Witchdoesn’t look back. The studio’s new movie The legend of Ochi confirms the strategy: it’s pure fantasy, elevated only by a discernible commitment to letting filmmakers do their own strange, wonderful things. And in this case, that means sending a cute, cuddly boy on an adventure.
The legend of Ochi German actor Helena Zengel plays Yuri, who lives in a beautiful remote mountain village and is told never to go outside after dark. The forests outside that beautiful remote mountain village are populated by the ochi, who threaten the lives of the people. Naturally, when Yuri meets a baby ochi, her world is turned upside down and a green odyssey begins.
The film is the brainchild of music video director and animator Isaiah Saxon, who has done everything from creator-driven DIY.org to directing a stunning Dirty Projectors music video. Saxon’s work is inherently connected to nature and being, so that is no surprise Legend of Ochi embraces mixed-media to bring a refreshing new flavor to kid-oriented fantasy. The trailer feels like a mix of Moonrise Kingdom, AND, The Green Knight – and Willem Dafoe joins in for good measure. Finn Wolfhard and Emily Watson complete the cast.
A24 has made it clear that a modern studio needs mainstream hits and a few solid IPs to keep the lights on. For that team it makes one Death stranding film at one point and capitalized on the horror craze with “elevated” material. Finding a way into the lost art of fantasy for all ages seems like a logical next step for a group to prove you can still do it the old-fashioned way. At a time when Jim Henson’s children lament the state of Hollywood and say: Labyrinth could never be made today, I don’t know… maybe?
The legend of Ochi arrives in theaters on February 28.