Full confession; I love animation, especially when the genre doesn't attempt to be hyper realistic but leans into its unique opportunity to tell stories "live action" cannot. American animation is starting to break out of the family adventure comedy mode and diversifying into more stylized approaches to telling stories like its counterparts around the world.
Entergalactic is a love story, a rather basic one to be honest. Boy meets girl, there is a meet cute, a connection, something that stands in their way, and then the ultimate reunion. It's not the story that is original about Entergalactic. It is so much more, from the gorgeous animation to the music it is based around, to an approach to telling a falling in love story that seems fresh.
While not entirely the same, the animation style is reminiscent of Into the Spiderverse, it is quite lovely to watch, creating an indigo world for its story to unfurl in. It also pairs well with Kid Cudi's original music for the piece (he has released an album paired with it) capturing the more surreal emotional elements of the love story over a more concrete narrative.
Entergalactic's romance is between two modern characters who don't fall into the traps of typical rom coms. Despite the story remaining heteronormative, the characters are drawn (pun intended) as equal partners who get to be sexually expressive humans pursuing their complicated desires and life goals while also reaching a connection that respects who each of them are. Stories like this give me hope for heterosexuals in the future. The chemistry between Cudi and Williams is just right. So even though we know where it is all going, there remains a lot of enjoyment in getting there.
Beautiful images and music helps make this story a joy to watch.
Entergalactic
Starring: Kid Cudi, Jessica Williams, Timothée Chalamet, Ty Dolla $ign, Laura Harrier, Vanessa Hudgens, Christopher Abbott, Jaden Smith, Keith David, Macaulay Culkin, Luis Guzmán
Director: Fletcher Moules
Writers: Ian Edeiman, Maurice Williams
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