Early on in the development of the digitally animated, theater-bound film “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken,” the story is said to have centered more on the titular character’s family, all of whom are secretly krakens.
The pivot to an emphasis on Ruby — a 16-year-old high school student having to hide the fact she is, in fact, of the sea while navigating the highs and lows of adolescence — was a wise one. Although that focus isn’t sharp enough, the movie spending too much time on side characters, Ruby is the biggest reason this saltwater-flavored coming-of-age story stays afloat.
Residing in the self-explanatory town of Oceanside, the Gillmans seem a little odd but attempt to chalk that up to their cover story: that they’re originally from Canada. (We’re pretty sure Canadians don’t have fin-like ears, but whatever.)
