olivia newman – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES – Review by T.J. Callahan

May 21, 2026May 21, 2026 T. J. Callahan Alfred Molina, Lewis Pullman, netflix, octopus, olivia newman, Sally Field, Shelby Van Pelt

If you have been living under a coral reef for a while…this is the movie about the Octopus book everyone has been reading since Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel hit the best seller list in 2022. Remarkably Bright Creatures is ultimately a heartwarming story, but takes us through change, grief, abandonment and growth before we get all the feels. Writer/director Olivia Newman’s screenplay adaption takes the best parts of the novel making it a multilayered therapy session disguised as a Sweet n Low streamer.

Reviews

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES – Review by Susan Granger

May 12, 2026May 16, 2026 Susan Granger Alfred Molina, Lewis Pullman, netflix, octopus, olivia newman, Sally Field, Shelby Van Pelt

Sally Field, Lewis Pullman and a rust-colored giant Pacific octopus team up for Remarkably Bright Creatures, a tedious tale of loss, loneliness and love. Set in the quaint, picturesque, seaside town of Sowell Bay in the state of Washington, it revolves around Tova (Field), a widowed cleaning lady at the local aquarium, and a stranded rock musician, Cameron (Pullman), who are befriended by perceptive Marcellus (voiced by Alfred Molina), a captive cephalopod.

News

WEEK IN WOMEN: Olivia Newman’s REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES debutes on Netflix – Brandy McDonnell reports

April 16, 2026April 12, 2026 Brandy McDonnell netflix, olivia newman, Remarkably Bright Creatures, Sally Field, Shelby Van Pelt, the week in women, twiw

Olivia Newman’s star-studded adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt’s Remarkably Bright Creatures will debut May 8 on Netflix. The novel, which became commonly known as “that octopus book” spent more than 64 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Sally Field stars as a widow who works at a local aquarium and finds joy again when she forms an unlikely bond with a giant Pacific octopus. Olivia Newman is an award-winning writer-director whose films have screened at festivals internationally, including the New York Film Festival, Aspen Shortsfest and Vancouver International Film Festival, among others.

Reviews

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING – Review by Martha K Baker

July 18, 2022July 21, 2022 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) Daisy Edgar-Jones, Delia Owens, lucy alibar, olivia newman, reese witherspoon, Taylor Swift, Where the Crawdads Sing

Where the Crawdads Sing includes sex, shells, and snots and the Piggly Wiggly. It’s the story of a determined woman, shot and written by same. Director Olivia Newman handily flips the plots, back and forth, through the Sixties in the South, placing nature front and center to tell this story of Kya, a natural naturalist.

Reviews

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING – Review by Susan Granger

July 18, 2022July 18, 2022 Susan Granger Daisy Edgar-Jones, Delia Owens, lucy alibar, olivia newman, reese witherspoon, Taylor Swift, Where the Crawdads Sing

It’s a courtroom drama/murder mystery/ coming-of-age saga/ romance. Unfortunately, as adapted by Luci Alibar, directed by Olivia Newman, photographed by Polly Morgan and produced by Reese Witherspoon, it’s become disappointingly banal, evoking memories of sappy Nicholas Sparks’ novels – with an original song “Carolina,” written and performed by Taylor Swift.

Reviews

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING – Review by T. J. Callahan

July 12, 2022July 16, 2022 T. J. Callahan Daisy Edgar-Jones, Delia Owens, lucy alibar, olivia newman, reese witherspoon, Taylor Swift, Where the Crawdads Sing

Where the Crawdads Sing is based on the wildly popular novel set in the 1950’s and 60’s that tells the story of Kya, an abandoned girl who raised herself in the rural swampland of North Carolina. Known as the Marsh Girl around the nearby town, she haunts the community in more ways than one. This largely female helmed production has all the elements of a fulfilling summer fling.