User reviews

Though 'The One And Only Ivan (2020)' initially seems to skew quite young with its CG animal cast and to-camera narration, it eventually becomes a relatively nuanced exploration of the ethics of animal captivity. Is freedom worth trading for security? How free can you be from within a cage? Is it wrong to keep an animal out of the wild, even if it's loved and given all the care it needs? These questions are all brought up over the course of the breezy but unconventionally paced piece, with their never-as-simple-as-they-seem answers being left largely for the viewer to decipher. Along the way, the flick charms with its subtle but warm voice-work and its impressively integrated special effects. It isn't mind-blowing, but it's generally enjoyable and much more interesting than you may expect. It's a good movie. 6/10

Just watched this with my 8 yo girls and they (and I) loved it. Based on a true story of a gorilla that can paint, leaves you with a smile.

This is a very sweet story about an ape in captivity who lived for years in a shopping mall performing circus acts and he learns to paint and dreams of freedom where he can roam in the wild. The animals are friends and talk to one another and worry as business goes downhill with declining attendance. They embark on a courageous escape only to realize the wild isn't quite what they imagined. The CGI is well done as it looks realistic and the voice acting is fantastic as well. Overall the story is endearing especially as it's a true story.

It is an emotional story that every family can watch. Even if the screenplay is a bit weak and some characters are boring, after all is nice and interesting.

Special effects are amazing! Animals look real!

My rating is 7.

As a teen I would not recommend this film to another teen or adult. Disney is kind of just doing the same thing they always do (which they do well don't get me wrong). The book on the other hand, while geared toward younger audiences is something I could get behind anytime at all. What made the book so special was the way Applegate was able to write from the perspective of a gorilla. It was brilliant and I now realize that there was little hope of a movie being able to achieve the same thing. I watched this film because it was nominated for best visual effects this year and I was not disappointed on that front at all. Overall this is a good film to watch with a young person unfamiliar with the ways of Disney, but certainly read the book first.

Nice novie to watch witb your kids. Monkey is looking for his freedom.

Disney did a good job. I really enjoyed watching it

I'm 43yrs old and Lord knows I've seen it all in my day. With that said this is the best movie to come out in a long time for kids. My kids sat down and watch the entire movie without losing interest. The best party of my experience with this movie it kept my kids talking about it after the movie was over. A few days later they wanted to watch it again. Great job Disney!

This movie has a simple and plain story nothing extraordinary it is inspired from a true movie. The animations are good but feels short to make u feel the emotions involved. Overall weak storyline. Kids will like it but the movie is very basic for adults

A film with a large target. From animal lovers, to kids and fans of the actors. A film, a touching one, who did not look for impress< its simplicity and the fine hybrid action are the basic virtues defining it. Each proposing more questions, as support of fair reflection about rights of animals , about friendship, about business . The balance is a good point too. But, maybe, the best thing is the familiarity of story. You know it . You know Ivan, grace to documentaries, articles or news. But the film is not remember, only a simple story telling about small things who are, together, always, in each period, real, real significant.

It's a kids movie through and through but it does have a little bit of heart buried under it all.

It deals with topics like animal captivity in a digestible way for children but also in a way that may make an adult think too.

The voice acting is fine but I feel like a lot of characters were very under baked.

The CG is good...it sound so stupid because they are talking animals but it just didn't seem real. It's hard to explain you just have to sort of see it for your self. They look like real animals but they are just that little bit off. And I get it that they are not going for a nature documentary but it was just like a little bit distracting. It sounds so nit picky but you might know what I mean if you watch it.

Other than that it was a perfectly fine movie.

Nothing all that fresh, but it certainly made me feel for the characters so that's always a big plus.

The cast elevate the film, for sure! Bryan Cranston, no matter the nature of any role he plays, is always enjoyable and/or likeable. He brings heart as Mack, as do Sam Rockwell (Ivan) and Angelina Jolie (Stella). I liked Danny DeVito as Bob, while Ariana Greenblatt portrays the wholesome Julia well.

The (true) premise is something we've all seen before, as such you're just waiting for the 'penny to drop' so the film can get going - once that happens onscreen events do improve, culminating in a very touching end. 'The One and Only Ivan' is ideal for family viewing, I'd say.

Oh what a shame. Not a kids movie as it's breathtakingly slow. Not a grown ups movie as it explains everything too much. A hard task is to make you believe a gorilla can talk but when the dog has such a similar tone it all falls down.

The ending was pulling at the heart strings but so syrupy the heart has stopped. The last scene in Schitt's Creek was nuch more moving! Give me Bambi or Lady & the Tramp original storytelling done well. The CGI was astounding but you need a way of telling the story better. What did your kids think?

A touching film and I found it cute. However, it left me with sadness to know that in real life Ivan was kept from seeing the outside world for 27 years.

The One and Only Ivan is a really good film that's fun and heartwarming, if too formulaic. Sam Rockwell and Bryan Cranston are both great and essentially carry the film with some solid emotional weight. Brooklyn Prince, Danny DeVito and Ariana Greenblatt are all really good. The CG is impressively detailed and Thea Sharrock's direction is really good. It's well filmed and the music by Craig Armstrong is good.

Saw 'The One and Only Ivan' when it first came out on Disney Plus, so a while back (have been behind with my reviewing hence the delay). My main reasons being my love for Disney (especially the Golden Age and Renaissance animated films), the circus being a nostalgic setting, liking animals and for the cast (humans and voices). It really is hard to go wrong with Bryan Cranston, Sam Rockwell and Danny DeVito, and they are just a few names involved.

'The One and Only Ivan' turned out to be a nice and well done family film, that is just right tonally for children and with enough for adults to enjoy too. Really liked its sincerity and it's all well crafted with nothing faring disastrously, but it does fall short of being exceptional. When it comes to live action Disney, there has been better but also a lot worse as well. 'The One and Only Ivan' may not have been the best film released during the pandemic, but it is around solid middle.

It is formulaic and also slight story-wise with not much new, the slightly too neat ending can be seen from some way off as well as the on the rushed side lead up to it.

Occasionally, the sentimentality gets a bit much (didn't think the coda was needed) and momentum drags towards the end.

However, a lot is good and there is so much to recommend. It is a good looking film, with a very vibrant circus setting filmed with accomplishment. Best of all are the beautifully realised photo-realistic look for the animals with there being absolutely nothing fake about them. The music is rousing but also gently luscious while the direction keeps things moving along quite nicely on the whole. The script flows well and avoids being cheesy or mawkish.

While the story is nothing new and imperfect pace-wise, there is a real charm and poignancy to it (especially with Stella, the consequences of her ageing are handled very movingly) and the gentle pace generally works in its favour. The circus setting is suitably exciting, risk taking and vibrant and the acts make the jaw drop. The true story-like element of the story is interesting and educational as well as emotionally investable (the credits sequence was beautifully done) and target audience (the whole family, not just children) is never in question.

The cast is very good, Cranston is very authoritative and Ariana Greenblatt is winning as Julia. Even better are the voice cast, Rockwell of course voices with a lot of nuanced charisma in the title role and other standouts are sassy DeVito and classy Angelina Jolie. Ruby also is absolutely adorable.

In summary, nice charming film if not mind-blowing. 7/10.

Silverback guerilla Ivan (Sam Rockwell) grew up with his human trainer Mack (Bryan Cranston) who has built an animal circus show in a shopping mall. Stella (Angelina Jolie) is an old female elephant. Ivan has a pet dog (Danny DeVito) which sneaks into his cage all the time. The show is struggling with small crowds until Mack brings in a baby elephant from a defunct circus.

This is an anthropomorphic animal feel-good movie inspired by a true story. I really like the story and the characters. There is one issue. This is nowhere near the true story. It leaves me wondering if a closer rendition of the true story would be more fitting. Either that or leave the true story to google. Overall, it's a sweet story. I like that Mack is an understandably conflicted man who always loves his animals despite some missteps. When the closing credits happen, I kept wondering when that movie is coming out.

Watched The One And Only Ivan with Oscar Winner Sam Rockwell(Jojo Rabbit) as Ivan , Danny DeVito(Jumanji: The Next Level) as Bob, Angelina Jolie (Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil) as Stella, Brooklyn Prince(The Florida Project) as Ruby, Helen Mirren(Hobbs & Shaw) as Snickers, Mike White as Frankie, Chaka Khan(RuPaul's Drag Race) as Henrietta, With Bryan Cranston(Isle Of Dogs) as Mack.

I thought the film was heartwarming it was basically a reverse homeward and loosely based on the true events I thought it was heartwarming and great voice performances from Sam Rockwell, Prince, Jolie, and Devito. Score By Craig Armstrong(The Great Gatsby), Cinematography By Florian Ballhaus (The Captain) direction Thea Shaddrock(Me Before You) A Reverse Homeward Bound 7/10

Ivan was nicely rendered and performed by Sam Rockwell, but practically everything else was coated in predictable syrup. The overall story of good animals need to be free, while hard to argue with was delivered in a horrible virtue signaling fashion, so much so as to undo the good intention. The overall effect was hollow because of it. Cranston does a terrible cartoon character rendering of his role, and only the animals come across as real, and they're all CGI and don't talk in real life. Devito, Rockwell and Jollie are pretty decent. The rest, didn't deliver.

Just watched this with my son and we really enjoyed it.

It is a family, feel good movie that brings a fair amount of heart with it.

It pulls on your heart strings too at times but all in all, it is a happy movie.

The kids will love it.

I give a number of stars like this: the reason is that it hurts to have to make a film about human error, their attitude to nature, contempt. Just the end of the movie is nice, animals of this kind, no need to be an attraction in the mall = to make people laugh and it's time for it to be understood, and clear.