What would you do if you got to know you have just one year to live and you have been stuck in a cage for so long? That's exactly how the movie started. We've been in situations where all we know is hustling, but what happens when we have just a little time to spend in the world? I have thought about this numerous times, and still no answer has found its way to my head. Maybe numerous answers have… haha.
However, this movie brought to us the life of a lizard and a turtle who have been stuck in a Florida school for decades. When the lizard got to know he had just a year to live, things took a different turn.
Movie title: Leo.
Distributor: Netflix.
Released date: November 21, 2023.
Genres: Animation, Adventure, and Comedy.
You know that feeling when you need to get free from a place you've known all your life to explore where you truly belong? Leo, the Lizard, felt the need to do that in the cage he was kept in when he found out he was dying soon. It is interesting to see how the fear of death could bring a spark of freedom in our lives.
The movie started with 5th grade schoolers who started school after their summer break. Leo and the turtle have seen a lot of 5th graders come and go and as usual, they check the new pupils out to get to know who this and that are while showing to the viewers different characters of the kids.
The new 5th graders were promised to have a field trip to any place of their choice if they do well academically, and that fully pushed us to the movie. However, the class went into chaos when they got a substitute teacher when their teacher got pregnant and needed to get a rest. The children thought they would be able to have fun when the substitute teacher came, but fate wasn't going as they planned. Lol.
When the substitute came, the pupils got something unexpected. The teacher was a bully, and the pupils weren't happy about that. But they had to stay in the class anyway and try to find a way to survive. The new teacher started with asking the pupils to take home one of the class pets, and Leo was chosen. Seeing this, Leo thought of planning to escape. The children taking him home became a way for him to try his escape plan.
Luck, they say, isn't always by our side, and Leo felt that too when he wasn't able to escape, but he did something better. He found that each child was flawed and helped them better, but he asked each child separately, not to tell anyone that he talked. Leo became the new favorite pet for the children. He became a counselor, but things took a huge turn when Leo's secret was found out that he talked to the children and why he needed to escape.
As usual, I didn't get to watch the movie trailer before watching the movie, and I am glad I didn't. The movie is an interesting one. Leo revealed a lot to us. We were able to know much about each child, their worries, and how they were able to change things.
If you love animated movies, then give this a go. You are going to love it. The scenes, the dialogue, and the adventure were on point!
Rotten tomatoes trailer from #YouTube.
Still yours truly,
Balikis.
Thanks for reading and listening.
Peace be unto those who crave it and more to those who chase it away.