Parky At the Pictures (4/9/2026)

(Review of The Pout-Pout Fish)

THE POUT-POUT FISH.

Spanish-Australian director Ricard Cussó has been steadily building a reputation for bright and breezy CGI animations. Starting with The Wishmas Tree (2019), he has introduced us to such marsupial mavericks as Daisy Quokka: World's Scariest Animal (2020) and Combat Wombat (2020), who went down so well that he got a sequel, Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back (2023). Despite being dismissed by sniffy broadsheet critics in this country, Cussó has become the cornerstone of the Like a Photon studio's `Tales From Sanctuary City' series, also directing Scarygirl (2023) and The Sloth Lane (2024), as well as producing Indigenous film-maker Chantelle Murray's The Lost Tiger (2025).

He now turns to The Pout-Pout Fish, which has been inspired by a bestselling series of children's books by Deborah Diesen, as such Disney/Pixar subterranean tales as Finding Nemo (2003), Shark Tale (2004), and Finding Dory (2016). Scripted by Elise Allen, Elie Choufany, and Dominic Morris, this US-Australian co-production isn't a work of dazzling visual innovation or literary elegance or originality. But it's lively and thoughtful and should make a back-to-school treat for younger viewers.

Ocean pout Mr Fish (Nick Overman) may not be the cheeriest member of the coral reef community where DJ Beautiful Mike (Grant Denyer) plays uplifting music and Hector the octopus shopkeeper (Mark Coles Smith) is one of many to tell Mr Fish to cheer up because of his downturned expression. But he is proud of his sunken boat home. Unfortunately, this gets accidentally destroyed and the debris crushes the adjoining premises, where a young sea dragon named Pip (Nina Oyama) is the last of her shoal to remain at home with their parents. As she needs to find accommodation for the hundreds of siblings she is expecting when her parents return home, Mr Fish reluctantly agrees to embark upon a journey to find a Siamese fighting fish named Shimmer, who is reputed to have the power to grant wishes.

According to legend, Shimmer can only grant a single wish every four years and Benji the cuttlefish (Remy Hii) is determined it will be his. He lives in the abyss below the reef with his pal Archie (Nazeem Hussain) and is worried that his pod will be forced to relocate because kelp is growing at such a rate that it's increasingly blocking out the sunlight. Benji's mother, Marin (Miranda Otto), realises that they have no option but to move on, but he hopes that Shimmer will be able to save the day.

On reaching Jellyfish Junction, Mr Fish and Pip find two box jellyfish with their tentacles trapped under a rock. As they contain stingers, Mr Fish is reluctant to help, especially as Shaz (Mel Butte) reveals that Benji is also searching for Shimmer. But Pip insists they release the pair because she lives by the motto `Always help friends stuck under a rock because it's friendly and, when you do, they'll be your friends and will help you some day when you're under a rock or some other big heavy thing.'

Finding it hard to resist such logic, Mr Fish pushes against the rock and the jellyfish free themselves. They promise to repay the favour, as their new friends swim away towards Dolphin Cove. At the Pink Lagoon, they meet dolphins Brigitta, Greta, and Karina (all Amy Sedaris), who quickly become obsessed with Mr Fish's pouting lips. They are dieting, but have become so hungry that they can't think straight. Reckoning it's easier to eat their visitors than go to Shark Shack, they chase Pip and Mr Fish before realising that they could eat kelp because it would fill them up without bloating them. They are so pleased with this solution that they vow to help their new friends if they are ever in need.

Swimming on, but still having no idea where to find Shimmer or how close Benji is getting, Mr Fish and Pip come across a mother whale (Anne Edmonds), who is worried because her pup (Lucas Haddrick) has got lost in a crevasse. Once again, Mr Fish bows to Pip's desire to be helpful and they dive into the dark depths to find the young whale cowering behind some weeds because he's lost. Finding a way out proves more difficult, however, and the trio is indebted to a bioluminescent eel (Lloyd Langford) who guides them out of the chasm and back to the relieved mother. She also offers her help if it's ever needed and points Pip and Mr Fish in the direction of the Crystal Caves.

They finally find Shimmer (Jordin Sparks) who remembers Mr Fish from when he was a youngster named Gil. Poppa Fish (Christopher James Baker) was so nervous about straying too far from home that a curious Gil had ventured out one day and got lost. Shimmer had helped him find his father (which convinced him that she could grant wishes). However, Poppa Fish had warned his son to keep away from unfamiliar fish and this had shaped his suspicious personality.

As Pip tries to explain why she needs Shimmers help, Benji arrives and kidnaps her. He speeds off back towards the reef with Mr Fish and Pip in pursuit. However, Shimmer reveals that she has now wish-giving powers and Marin is so ashamed of Benji that she disowns him. She orders the cuttlefish to leave their home and make their way towards the reef. However, she has decided to hypnotise the existing residents to drive them away so that her pod can take over their abodes. Realising that the coral reef will be destroyed, Mr Fish and Pip call on their new-found friends, who attack the kelp fields with gusto. The dolphins chomp away, while Shaz and the eel zap the roots to clear away the vegetation so that the cuttlefish can return. Marin is proud of Benji for his part in the clearance and she tells Archie to stop being such a suck-up.

Mr Fish and Pip return to their patch of reef, with the former being delighted to have his wrecked ship repaired. Pip also finds a sunken cruise ship in time for her new family's arrival. She shows Mr Fish that she has written a book about their adventures entitled `The Pout-Pout Fish' and he is inspired to ask Shimmer for a date. While he's summoning the nerve, however, the eel unintentionally causes his home to fall apart again.

Deborah Diesen's text is filled with life lessons and Ricard Cussó and co-director Rio Harrington have found room for most of them in this engaging saga. Uppermost are the notions of friendship and teamwork, as Mr Fish learns that reaching out to strangers can have beneficial effects. He also learns that helping those in need and seeing the best in others can have a ripple effect and increase your own sense of self-worth. Moreover, he comes to realise that it's okay to feel sad and that bad moods don't have to last forever or define you or how people relate to you.

That's a lot for young minds to take on board, but the film doesn't push the messages too hard, as they all emerge naturally from the story. The CGI animation is unremarkable, but the characterisation inspired by the source is strong and is reinforced by the voiceover work of Nick Overman and the excellent Nina Oyama. Guest turns by Miranda Otto and Amy Sedaris also stand out, with the latter bringing audio distinctiveness to the lookalike dolphin trio.

Such is the nature of the quest narrative that Mr Fish and Pip don't stay in one place for long. But Cussó might have lingered longer over establishing the ambience of their idyllic home and why the shipwreck means so much to Mr Fish. The cuttlefish quandary is also sketchily limned, while the sense of competition and jeopardy involved in the race against Benji never feels compelling or urgent. Even Shimmer's revelation seems a bit underwhelming, while Marin's horrible plan to clear the reef feels contrived because her ruthlessness comes from nowhere and screenwriters Elise Allen, Elie Choufany, and

Dominic Morris seem reluctant to discuss its sinister ramifications in any detail.

But this is a children's entertainment not a treatise on the woes of the modern world. Consequently, it should be commended for raising issues that will impact upon the everyday experience of many of the young viewers and doing so in an accessible and enjoyable manner. After all, who can resist a fish out of water story that's set at the bottom of the ocean?