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Lost Ollie centres around a young lad called Billy (Kesler Talbot), who loses his favourite toy, Ollie (voiced by Jonathan Groff), which leads to the toy looking for him! Awww!
Ollie can talk, but no adults can hear him. However, children can. He’s trying to get back to his owner, Billy, but doesn’t know where he lives, other than… perhaps in a house in the woods. And when it comes to negotiating the real world to find him, it’s a jungle out there!
Additionally, other toys can move, too, like Zozo the clown (Tim Blake Nelson). With his help, he might just be able to get home. However, Zozo has also lost someone, so pain is felt all round. Along the way, they’ll team up with swordswoman teddy bear Rosy (Mary J Blige), with other characters to encounter as they go along.
Getting out of their initial location is just the beginning, and this film is a bit slow to get going, but gets better once they step outside.
Lost Ollie comes from creator Shannon Tindle, who brought us the excellent Kubo and The Two Strings, and brilliantly mixes CGI with live action. It’s very heartfelt, dealing with love and loss (where did all my childhood toys go? …probably a jumble sale after I’d outgrown them), and is quite dark at times for what’s generally a kids TV series. That said, with his quiff, Zozo reminds me of Mark Kermode!
With great support from Gina Rodriguez (I Want You Back) as Billy’s mum, I don’t want to say too much else, so as to avoid spoilers, but do check this out and stick with it, even during its lulls. At around nearly three hours when adding all four episodes together, it could’ve cut 30-40 minutes out of that running time.
Thanks to our friends at Netflix for the screener prior to release.
Lost Ollie is not available to pre-order on Blu-ray or DVD, but is on Netflix from Wednesday August 24th.
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 40-45 minutes per episode (4 episodes)
Release date: August 24th 2022
Studio: Netflix
Format: 2.39:1
Director: Peter Ramsey
Producers: Brent Crowell, Kate Gersten, Peter M Tobyansen
Novel: William Joyce
Adaptation: Kate Gersten, Shannon Tindle, Marc Haimes
Music: Scot Blackwell Stafford, Stephen A Spies
Cast:
Ollie: Jonathan Groff
Momma: Gina Rodriguez
Daddy: Jake Johnson
Zozo: Tim Blake Nelson
Rosy: Mary J Blige
Billy: Kesler Talbot
Flossie: BJ Harrison
Mike Apple: Everett Andres
Jolene: Zoë Noelle Baker
Jim Tom: Paul Anthony
Suzy Wiles: Isabel Birch
Suzy’s Dad: James Pizzinato
Rhodes: Nevin Burkholder
Billy (4 yrs old): William Carson
Mr. Gilly: Everick Golding
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.