Captain Crow (Jared Harris) and Jacob Holland (Karl Urban) lead a crew of “Hunters” aboard their ship, The Inevitable. Their job is to make the seas safe by killing giant sea monsters within their waters as decreed by the Royal Family of their homeland. The next sea beast in their sights is the mighty Bluster, after which Jacob will become Captain of The Inevitable. 

The Sea Beast’s plot hews fairly close to “How To Train Your Dragon”, in that it focuses on a long held belief that monsters that you share your environment with are your mortal enemies until you take the time to get to know them. Here it is a young stowaway named Maisie (Zaris-Angel Hator) who realises that their enemy may not actually be what they think. 

Gradually Maisie and Jacob will learn more about the beasts they hunt and change their belief system entirely. But will they be able to change the minds of those around them after so many years of violence? 

The Sea Beast is a real gem of an animated movie that has found itself buried within the Netflix algorithm. Released in 2022 I only came upon it thanks to my children choosing to bring me along for a rewatch of something they had already seen. There is a lot of humour, a lot of nautical action and some subtle but powerful messages hidden within. It is not often that a children’s animated movie has an underlying message about how powerful people maintain power by giving the populace a shared enemy and that hatred is something that people learn. 

Writer/director Chris Williams has a wonderful hit rate. Credited as a writer for Mulan and The Emperor’s New Groove and as a director for Bolt, Big Hero 6 and Moana this is another feather in his cap. It’s just a shame that without Disney’s marketing and appeal it has fallen a little by the wayside. 

Definitely one to watch for families and animation lovers.