In the lonely, crowded city of Mumbai, a pair of female Nurse roommates struggle with repressed desires, societal expectations, and the eternal weight of reality that crushes human dreams. 

So Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and Anu (Divya Prabha) are Nurses who work at the same hospital, more often than not having to deal with obstetrics (the baby stuff) and female-centric healthcare in a far-too-large populace that doesn’t seem to care about their women, or children. Prabha is prim and mildly older, admonishing the younger trainee Nurses to get over their complaints about the stink of afterbirth as soon as possible, where younger free-spirited Anu is willing to risk getting arrested for giving birth control pills surreptitiously to a desperate young mother with too many children already. 

Prabha has in theory a husband who, almost immediately after tying the knot, took off to Germany for a job, and of course she hasn’t heard from him in more than a year. When her husband sends her the gift of an expensive rice cooker, Prabha’s apparent numbness to the whole situation cracks open and she finds herself inundated with feelings again – abandonment and sadness of course, but also at the very least resentment in the holding pattern she’s stuck in, and a desire to be free, to decide what Prabha wants, even among the debilitating responsibilities of the day-to-day existence she leads with Anu. It doesn’t help that the hospital boasts a good man, the good Dr. Manoj (Azees Nedumangad) in fact, who’s been gently trying to court Prabha for some time now. 

And then there’s Anu and her sneaking around to try and find good places to be intimate with her boyfriend Shiaz (Hridhu Haroon). Which would be charming and sweet, except that Shiaz happens to be Muslim and even in the cosmopolitan slums of Mumbai, it’s still the Hindu parents who decide whom their children may be with, and marry. Anu knows perfectly well that her parents would never approve of Shiaz and so their need to find hidden doorways, alcoves, and even make-outs in the pouring rain are mildly tinged with the danger of getting caught. Rumors are starting to wing around the hospital too, and Prabha is made aware of the situation by gossiping busybodies, much to her silent disapproval. After trying to help her friend Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam), who was being forced out of her tiny apartment by the unfeeling legal system, nothing comes of it and Parvaty decides to leave Mumbai and take a small moving vacation to a beach town nearbyish, Prabha hatches a plan to try and divert Anu from her potentially disastrous actions. 

Ostensibly to help Parvaty with her life-changing move, both Prabha and Anu take a mini-vacation to the beach town, and there is a lovely moment when Prabha discovers some ancient-but-still-good alcohol among Prabha’s things and the three of them get tipply and dance. Immersed in her own loneliness, Prabha fails to realize Anu snuck Shiaz to meet her at the seaside town until she witnesses it with her own eyes, and Anu is far too concerned with finally closing escrow as it were with Shiaz to realize she’s been caught anyway. 

Genre: Action, Comedy, Family Drama, Sci-Fi

Director: Hideki Takeuchi

Starring: Mei Nagano, Takeru Satoh

Rating: Rating: 4/5

Hideki Takeuchi’s live-action adaptation of Cells at Work! isn’t just a film—it’s a joyful, genre-blending celebration of life, health, and humanity, all set within the microscopic universe of a teenage girl. In the Urushizaki household, high schooler Niko dutifully cares for her widowed father, balancing her own life with his well-being. But beneath her healthy routines, her immune system is waging an epic war against a torrent of invading pathogens. With Red and White Blood Cells working overtime, Niko’s survival—and her shot at teenage romance—rests on their shoulders.

In this inventive blend of biology and storytelling, Cells at Work! spins a wildly entertaining narrative that combines elements of action, family drama, and rom-com. The film’s core is Niko’s story, a heartfelt journey of caregiving, self-discovery, and young love, framed by an intense battle happening within her body. The inner world is vivid and action-packed, reminiscent of Inside Out with a Japanese twist, where every cell plays a role, and every pathogen is a villain in Niko’s quest to stay healthy for her dad and her date.

Mei Nagano, as a sprightly Red Blood Cell, exudes boundless energy and enthusiasm, perfectly capturing the eager determination of a novice at work. Takeru Satoh, known for his role in Rurouni Kenshin, takes on the role of a stoic White Blood Cell, providing a protective and understated foil to Nagano’s character. Together, they form an unexpectedly endearing duo, navigating the perils inside Niko with both humor and heart. Their chemistry is infectious, adding warmth and fun to the film’s high-stakes battles.

Director Hideki Takeuchi is known for bringing imaginative worlds to life, and he does just that with Cells at Work! By merging the high-concept world of anime with live-action, Takeuchi crafts a visually vibrant spectacle where the bloodstream becomes a battlefield. Each cell’s costume is designed with intricate detail, adding a touch of lavish cosplay that brings humor and authenticity to the film’s zany setting. Action scenes are thrilling and gravity-defying, making the body’s defense mechanisms feel like epic duels, while the humor—sometimes raunchy, often slapstick—keeps the tone refreshingly lighthearted.

Beyond the scientific antics, Cells at Work! is a tribute to the human body and the beauty of human connections. With scenes that celebrate caring for loved ones, cherishing youth, and the joys of teamwork, the film transcends its biological focus to speak to something universal. It’s impossible not to be moved by Niko’s relationship with her father, and by the dedication of her body’s “micro-heroes” who fight tirelessly to keep her healthy.

Cells at Work! is an absolute joy—a film that combines educational elements with heart, humor, and high-energy action. Hideki Takeuchi’s skill at blending genres is on full display, making it an unforgettable, entertaining ride that will leave audiences laughing, cheering, and maybe even wiping away a tear.

A vibrant, genre-bending journey through the human body, Cells at Work! is a spectacle for the senses and the soul. This lively adaptation is one that audiences of all ages can enjoy, learning a bit of biology along the way.

A woman who put her career on hold to become a first-time stay-at-home-Mom finds her smaller world taking an almost supernatural turn. 

This is an odd one ya’ll. The film is touted as a body-horror dark comedy but struggles to find a role, a category, a niche that it fits into neatly and properly that can tell a potential viewer why they want to watch this movie. This is actually perfect for Nightbitch anyway, for our nameless protagonist Mother is also struggling with literally everything – being a first-time mother to a rambunctious baby boy, contending with an also-nameless husband (Scoot McNairy) whose job keeps him away more than half the time, regretting the fact that she gave up a career as an artist for motherhood, oh and also, noticing strange changes happening to her body. Make sure your diaper bag is stocked and let’s dive into this! 

So our new Mom (Amy Adams) just hates the stuff that other moms seem to find enjoyable, most especially the story-and-singing time held at their local library, full of mostly other moms and their loud children, dutifully singing along mindlessly to that repetitive garbage that makes one want to rip their own ears off. Mom is stuck in the repeat of minutiae involved in caring for a baby, all alone too, and laments finding herself becoming more and more bestial and less and less super-mom who can do everything. At one point this thought of less-than-human starts becoming literal, as Mom starts experiencing things like a proto-tail and extra hair that’s damn too close to fur for comfort. But what can one do, other than endure and continue on? Our Mom decides to actually lean into the beast nature of things and see where it takes her! 

The nameless husband that Scoot McNairy plays, a man who is so milquetoast and bland and unhelpful that he might as well be a cardboard cutout, lends himself to a trend of similar characters McNairy has played elsewhere. We get the feeling that he is simply there to give Mom a target to lash out against, as she accuses him of helping her set aside her adult dreams of artistry in favor of family, even as he fires lamely back that that was what she told him she wanted. He fails to put up any struggle when Mom tells him she wants a separation, and we can almost see him shrink further in Mom’s eyes when that doesn’t happen, for her feral new nature is spoiling for a fight, or multiple fights. A good old-fashioned screaming and throwing things match could lead to some epic make-up sex, or at the very least actually clear the air between our nameless parents, but no. They argue they cry, they separate, and of course, Mom takes the baby, graciously allowing Dad to come to visit and take the baby for outings. But hope for reconciliation is pretty non-existent. 

Our Mom may have decided to lean into the strangeness of her bodily changes, her being chased around by follower canines that may or may not be the bestial natures of her fellow mothers, even the very basic nature of what it means to be a mother, but only up to a certain point. As much fun as it is to shed her human envelope and run in her fur at night might be, a tiny completely helpless human will still be waiting at home for her to come back to feed and take care of him. This crushing responsibility versus the very real freedom of being a beast is one of the many contradictions lacing the film, and perhaps the most prevalent, due to the simmering resentment Mom feels at being both freed and constrained in literally the same breath. 

There isn’t so much an end to the film, more like Mom finally resigns herself to be completely changed from who she was before she became ‘Mom’, but still grasping at some shred of self left that doesn’t necessarily stem entirely from her child. Entirely contradictory but in a sympathetic-to-motherhood kind of way, Nightbitch asks the audience to remember that while ‘Mom’ maybe her new all-encompassing title forever, she did and does still have a name, and dreams to realize, too.