'Little Fish' is a film about Emma and Jude, their relationship and a contagion that leaves its victims helpless as they start to lose their memory. The film opens on Emma meeting Jude and jumps back and forth in time throughout their relationship. We learn that they have formed a close bond, moved in together and married.
Through all of this, a contagious virus is spreading quickly and affecting peoples memories, leaving them unable to recall their occupations or the ones closest to them. The devastating effects of the virus are shown through Ben and Samantha, Jude and Emma's friends, that fall on hard times, as Ben slowly becomes unable to remember Samantha. Some time later, Jude and Emma apply for a trial procedure that may halt the effects of the virus, as Jude slowly loses his memory. Jude is denied to proceed in the trial, and he asks Emma to attempt to carry out the procedure on him, even though it is highly risky and dangerous.
With no results, Jude professes his feelings for Emma and the two spend time together, until Jude is unable to recognise Emma at one point. Leaving her devastated, Emma breaks down, yet moments later, when approached again by Jude, the memory loss that both have experienced at this point provide for a new initial meeting.
'Little Fish' starts out as a heartfelt and touching romance between Jude and Emma. From the moment we are introduced to them and their courtship, a real sense of love and attachment can be felt, providing for a fantastic and deeply touching love story without utilising overly saccharine tropes. The places the two go and the things that they do seem fairy-tale like, yet very much grounded in reality. Their relationship seems unencumbered by any difficulty, which lets their passion for each other shine through and seemingly create the perfect relationship.
As news surfaces of the virus and we see that Jude is infected, together with Emma we get to experience the devastation and heartbreak that the news holds. By seeking out treatment and eventually being rejected from it, 'Little Fish' is unafraid of showing the harsh reality of facing difficulties as a couple and presents the main characters as very real and relatable as they express their fear and anger about the future.
Wanting to capture what remains of Jude, Emma encourages him to remember the highlights of their partnership, from the moment they met, to how they got engaged and when they got married. As time progresses, Jude gets worse, but Emma stays with him and the two try to reconcile the current situation. In contrast to that, their friends Samantha and Ben have a different experience. As Ben loses his memory and cannot recall Samantha, an exchange between Sam and Emma highlights the genuine fear that Sam feels, as the person who she loves had just tried to stab her with the kitchen knife. The different experiences show us that it takes a strong person to be able to try and maintain a relationship to which one party is ailing. Through no fault of their own, the infected do become harder to live with, both emotionally and in practical terms.
At the core of 'Little Fish' is the idea of love, companionship and what really makes up both a person and the life that they have shared with another. As Jude gets progressively worse, we can see Emma struggling to cope with losing her best friend, at one point noting that she knows more about him than he does. The descent into darkness takes a violent shift for the worst when Jude completely loses memory of Emma, leaving her broken and in shock, panicking about what is to come next. The sense of dread and panic is palpable as we feel the same loss Emma does, as we have come to know Jude so well over the course of the film.
The final scene does play out in a dark and twisted way, as Emma breaks down, yet Jude returns to her. As the two meet and we realise that Emma is also infected and the virus is progressing quite quickly, there is a promise of hope that the two will find joy with one another again, but it cannot be sustained, as the virus is taking a toll on both of them.
Olivia Cooke portrays Emma, a woman trying her best to hold together a relationship that is destined for disaster. By taking action and trying to cope, we go on the tragic journey with Emma as she slowly loses her husband and is unable to get to her mother as she slowly fades away. Cooke anchors the film by capturing every scene that she is in, delivering a profoundly touching and empathetic performance, allowing us to live through her pain and joy alongside her.
Jack O'Connell portrays Jude, a photographer that has to deal with slowly losing his memory. O'Connell portrays Jude as an intriguing and exciting individual, seemingly always being up to a fun adventure and never slowing down when it comes to having fun with Emma. As Jude is infected, we get to witness O'Connell deliver a stirring performance as his character goes through fear, confusion and anxiety. The surprisingly positive choice that exists in the story is that even though Jude loses his memory, at his core he is still the fun-loving person we first meet, and are heartbroken to see him not remember the joy he has previously shared with Emma. Together the pair create a truly real sense of a newly married couple, that let us share in their happiness and grief as life happens around them.
The film is directed by Chad Hartigan and written by Mattson Tomlin. Together the pair have developed an introspective story, reflecting disaster on a smaller scale, with a global pandemic in the background. By exploring the pain and uncertainty Emma and Jude experience, the audience is able to release some of their own tension, facing the fact that a global tragedy is experienced by everyone, with no one remaining unaffected. The film also possess a calming and soft quality to if, with may of its interior scenes displayed in a soft light, and taking advantage of exterior shots that are largely based in nature.
The film goes through a myriad of twist and turns, delivering a range of emotions the couple face and go through, remaining entertaining and surprising until the last moments of the feature. With a heartfelt and deeply emotional relationship at its core 'Little Fish' is a love story that raises a contemplation over the essence of being, - if we are only a collection of experiences and our memories. Through Emma and Jude we can learn to approach the idea and live through having to face the tragedy of losing our loved ones and eventually ourselves. By examining the reality of unavoidable tragedy together with a couple in love, the film delivers both a heartfelt and devastating story that should not be missed.
Score: 4/4
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