''Cryptozoo'' is a 2021 American

adult animated An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film written and directed by

Dash Shaw Dash Shaw (born April 6, 1983) is an American comic book writer/artist and animator. He is the author of the graphic novels ''Cosplayers'', ''Doctors'', ''New School'', and ''Bottomless Belly Button'', published by Fantagraphics. Additionally, Sha ...

. It features an

ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that comprises many principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast to the po ...

Lake Bell Lake Siegel Bell (born March 24, 1979) is an American actress, screenwriter, and director. She has appeared in various television series, including '' Boston Legal'' (2004–2006), ''Surface'' (2005–2006), '' How to Make It in America'' (2010 ...

Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera ( ; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor. Over his career he has received nominations for a British Academy Film Award, three Critics' Choice Movie Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Tony Award. Cera beca ...

Angeliki Papoulia Angeliki Papoulia (; born 1975) is a Greek actress and theatre director. In film, she is most notable for her roles in ''Dogtooth'', ''Alps'' and ''The Lobster'' by Yorgos Lanthimos, and '' A Blast'' and ''The Miracle of the Sargasso Sea'' by ...

Zoe Kazan Zoe Swicord Kazan (; born September 9, 1983) is an American actress and writer. She has acted in films such as '' The Savages'' (2007), '' Revolutionary Road'' (2008), and '' It's Complicated'' (2009). She starred in '' Happythankyoumoreplease'' ...

Peter Stormare Rolf Peter Ingvar Stormare (; Birth name, né Storm, 27 August 1953) is a Swedish actor. He played Prince Hamlet, Hamlet for Ingmar Bergman, Gaear Grimsrud in the film ''Fargo (1996 film), Fargo'' (1996) and List of Prison Break characters#John ...

Grace Zabriskie Grace Zabriskie (née Caplinger; born May 17, 1941) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Sarah Palmer in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991; 2017) and its film prequel '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992), Lois Henrickson in ''B ...

Louisa Krause Louisa Noel Krause (born May 20, 1986) is an American actress. After studying drama in college, she appeared in numerous off-Broadway productions while also appearing in episodes of New York-based network television series. Her first film role wa ...

and

Thomas Jay Ryan Thomas Jay Ryan (born August 1, 1962) is an American actor. He may be best known for his starring role in the 1997 film '' Henry Fool''. Early life and education Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Ryan attended Carnegie Mellon University and h ...

. The film had its world premiere at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

on January 29, 2021 and was released by

Magnolia Pictures Magnolia Pictures LLC is an American independent film distributor and production company, and is a subsidiary of Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner's 2929 Entertainment. Magnolia was formed in 2001 by Bill Banowsky and Eamonn Bowles, and specializes in ...

in the United States on August 20, 2021.

Plot

In the 1960s

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, after having sex in the forest, a young couple, Matthew and Amber, stumble across an enclosure. Climbing inside, they are shocked to discover a

unicorn The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since Classical antiquity, antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiraling horn (anatomy), horn projecting from its forehead. In European literature and art, the unico ...

, which becomes provoked and stabs Matthew to death. The unicorn then trips and breaks its leg, leading Amber to bludgeon it to death with a rock. Trying to escape the next morning, Amber discovers the place is a zoo for

cryptids Cryptids are animals or other beings whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated by science. Cryptozoology, the study of cryptids, is a pseudoscience claiming that such beings may exist somewhere in the wild; it has been widely cri ...

named Cryptozoo. One of the

cryptozoologists Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience and subculture that searches for and studies unknown, legendary, or extinct animals whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated, particularly those popular in folklore, such as Bigfoot, the Loch Ness M ...

that works there is Lauren Grey, who has dedicated her life to rescuing cryptids from the

black market A black market is a Secrecy, clandestine Market (economics), market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services who ...

after a

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

named Mariko cleansed her of nightmares when she was a child in American camps in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and thus has spent much of her time away from Cryptozoo. While on a mission to rescue an

alkonost The Alkonost is a legendary woman-headed bird in Slavic folklore. Alkonost is more likely an individual character, as was noted in some legends about this bird. Folklore The name of the Alkonost came from a Greek demigoddess whose name was A ...

from peasants with the help of a lecherous

faun The faun (, ; , ) is a half-human and half-goat mythological creature appearing in Greek and Roman mythology. Originally fauns of Roman mythology were ghosts ( genii) of rustic places, lesser versions of their chief, the god Faunus. Before t ...

named Gustav, the alkonost is suddenly taken away by Nicholas, a veteran and cruel cryptid trafficker who sells them to the

United States military The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...

bioweapons Biological warfare, also known as germ warfare, is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with the intent to kill, harm or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war. Bi ...

in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. Lauren is rescued by the zoo's owner and her mentor, Joan, who reveals that Mariko, who had previously been trafficked to America, has appeared after fleeing, and convinces her to team up with a

gorgon The Gorgons ( ; ), in Greek mythology, are three monstrous sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, said to be the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto. They lived near their sisters the Graeae, and were able to turn anyone who looked at them to sto ...

, Phoebe, to find her, as the Johnson administration seeks to use the Baku to devour the aspirations of the

counterculture movement The counterculture of the 1960s was an anti-establishment cultural phenomenon and political movement that developed in the Western world during the mid-20th century. It began in the early 1960s, and continued through the early 1970s. It is ofte ...

. Phoebe is also engaged to a human, Jay, who knows of her identity. The group tracks a lead to

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

, where they find and take a headless man named Pliny, along with the woman who raised him, back to Cryptozoo. Lauren shows them and Phoebe around Cryptozoo, but while Pliny loves it, Phoebe is put off by it and wishes for cryptids to be accepted everywhere. After settling in, Pliny reveals that he saw Mariko in

Maysville, Kentucky Maysville is a "Home rule in the United States, home rule" class city in Mason County, Kentucky, Mason County, Kentucky, United States, and is the county seat of Mason County. The population was 8,873 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

with a "black cat". Traveling there, Lauren and Phoebe discover Nicholas is also after the Baku. After unsuccessfully searching a

gentleman's club A gentlemen's club is a private social club of a type originally established by males from Britain's upper classes starting in the 17th century. Many countries outside Britain have prominent gentlemen's clubs, mostly those associated with th ...

called the Black Kitty Cat and talking with a

cat lady A cat lady is a cultural archetype or stock character, most often depicted as a middle-aged or elderly spinster or widow, who has many cats. The term may be pejorative, or it may be affectionately embraced. Usage and association Women who ha ...

, they come to a

tarot Tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a set of playing cards used in tarot games and in fortune-telling or divination. From at least the mid-15th century, the tarot was used to play t ...

shop with a black cat logo. While giving Lauren a reading, the shop owner realizes they are here for Mariko and reveals she is in a room in the back. They are about to take her, but Nicholas' men arrive and capture Lauren, Phoebe, and Mariko after being tipped off by Gustav. Nicholas takes them to Cryptozoo, intending to use the evidence to attack and capture all the cryptids there. When they arrive, however, the cryptids have all been released from their enclosures, and they begin attacking Nicholas' men, causing the helicopter with Mariko inside to crash. In the commotion, Lauren escapes and manages to commandeer a

griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...

, which proceeds to knock the helicopter carrying Nicholas, Gustav, and Phoebe into the

kraken The kraken (, from , "the crookie") is a legendary sea monster of enormous size, per its etymology something akin to a cephalopod, said to appear in the Norwegian Sea off the coast of Norway. It is believed that the legend of the Kraken may h ...

pool. Lauren rescues Phoebe, but Nicholas recaptures Mariko. Gustav successfully pleads for their lives, and the survivors flee from a camoodi into a

Karzełek The Skarbnik (diminutive of ''skarbnik'' – person collecting money) or Kladenets (Ukrainian: Скарбник, Russian: Кладенец) (the Treasurer) or Dzedka (Belarusian: Дзедка) in Slavic mythology live in mines and undergrou ...

cave. There they discover Amber, accompanied by the last known

Pegasus Pegasus (; ) is a winged horse in Greek mythology, usually depicted as a white stallion. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was the brother of Chrysaor, both born from Medusa's blood w ...

and having buried Matthew. Amber reveals that she was the one who released the cryptids, in an attempt to free them from their suffering. The cryptids proceeded to attack Amber, but the Pegasus flew her and Matthew's body to safety. Seeing Joan's office under attack, Lauren hops on the Pegasus to fly over to save her, with Gustav getting killed by Nicholas while giving her a window to escape. Lauren finds a weary Joan with her ape-like cryptid lover Vaughn, only for the camoodi to crush the office; Lauren escapes on the Pegasus. Finding Joan, Lauren mournfully concludes that they needed the cryptids more than the cryptids needed them, and Joan, unable to accept this, dies. The Karzełek attack Nicholas and his men, allowing Amber and Phoebe to flee. Phoebe comes up with a plan to use

Luz Mala In folklore, a will-o'-the-wisp, will-o'-wisp, or ; ), is an atmospheric ghost light seen by travellers at night, especially over bogs, swamps or marshes. The phenomenon is known in the United Kingdom by a variety of names, including jack-o'-l ...

to escort the cryptids safely out of the park. With Pliny's help, they find them just as Nicholas escapes and finds Mariko. He tries to capture her, but Mariko feeds off his dreams, killing him. Amber and Phoebe break out the Luz Mala using the unicorn's severed horn, and the Luz Mala escorts the cryptids out of the park, saving them and all the humans present. On her way out, Mariko encounters Lauren, who chooses to let her go. Lauren chooses to become a regular

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...

, with one of her clients being Amber, who has bought a dog in Matthew's honor. After Joan's funeral, Lauren attends Phoebe and Jay's wedding. While fishing in a nearby river, she notices Mariko swimming among the fish and watches the sunset, which Pliny also watches.

Cast

as Lauren Grey, a

cryptozoologist Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience and subculture that searches for and studies unknown, legendary, or extinct animals whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated, particularly those popular in folklore, such as Bigfoot, the Loch Ness M ...

who works at the Cryptozoo, and the main protagonist. *

as Matthew *

as Phoebe, a

. *

as Magdalene *

as Gustav, a

. *

as Joan, the owner of the Cryptozoo and Lauren Grey's mentor. *

as Amber *

as Nicholas, a

cryptid Cryptids are animals or other beings whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated by science. Cryptozoology, the study of cryptids, is a pseudoscience claiming that such beings may exist somewhere in the wild; it has been widely cri ...

-hating cryptid trafficker, and the main antagonist. *

Alex Karpovsky Alexander Karpovsky (born September 23, 1975) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and film editor. He is best known for his role as Raymond "Ray" Ploshansky on the HBO comedy drama series '' Girls'' (2012–17), for which he wa ...

as David

Release and reception

The film had its world premiere at the

on January 29, 2021 and won the Innovator Award. Shortly after,

acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film and set it for an August 20, 2021 release in the United States. The film also screened at the

71st Berlin International Film Festival The 71st annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 1 to 5 March 2021 as a virtual festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Scott Roxborough"Berlin Film Festival Unveils Panorama, Encounters Titles" ''The Hollywood Reporter'', 10 Feb ...

in March 2021. ''Cryptozoo'' holds a 72% approval rating on

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, based on 89 reviews, with an average rating of 5.80/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Although its visual overstimulation threatens to derail its themes, Cryptozoo is an ambitious and unique critique of capitalistic values." On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the film holds a rating of 74 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Jessica Kiang of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote: "In this zoo, the story may be tame, but the images, and the imagination that releases them, run wild." It was also nominated for the

John Cassavetes Award The Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award is presented to the creative team of a film budgeted at less than $1,000,000 by the Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers. It is named aft ...

at the

37th Independent Spirit Awards The 37th Film Independent Spirit Awards, honoring the best independent films and television series of 2021, were presented by Film Independent on March 6, 2022. Traditionally held the Saturday before the Academy Awards, the 2022 date marks a shi ...

MUBI
/ref> and received a Special Mention by the Jury at the

Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF) is a Swiss film festival dedicated to fantastic movies. The NIFFF constructs its programming around three central axes: Fantastic cinema, Asian cinema and Digital images. The films shown ...

References

External links

Official Site
*
Official trailer
{{Dash Shaw 2021 films 2021 independent films American adult animated films American animated drama films American independent films 2020s American animated films Sundance Film Festival award–winning films 2021 animated films 2021 drama films Magic realism films Animated films set in the 1960s Animated films set in San Francisco Films directed by Dash Shaw 2020s English-language films Cryptozoology in fiction Fauns in popular culture English-language independent films