I recently watched the film Where the Crawdads Sing on Netflix.
Honestly, I clicked on it because the title caught my eye. But what started as curiosity quickly turned into full-blown immersion. I couldn’t look away—its stunning visuals, quiet emotional depth, and unexpected twists pulled me right in.
Though it leans toward romance, this film has courtroom drama, a murder mystery, and one of the most memorable endings I’ve seen in a while.
Let’s dive in.
🎬 Basic Info
- Director: Olivia Newman
- Runtime: 125 minutes
- Rating: PG-13
- Genre: Drama, Romance, Mystery, Legal Thriller
Trailer
👩💼 Main Cast
- Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kya
- Taylor John Smith as Tate
- Harris Dickinson as Chase
- David Strathairn as Tom Milton (Defense Attorney)
- Jojo Regina as Young Kya
🌾 Plot Summary
A girl called “the marsh girl” becomes the prime suspect in a murder case.
Kya, abandoned by her family as a child, grows up isolated in the marshlands of North Carolina. Nature becomes her only friend. She survives by harvesting mussels at dawn and selling them for scraps.
One day, a boy named Tate—her only childhood friend—starts to reconnect with her. He teaches her how to read, encourages her to publish her nature drawings, and the two fall in love. But when Tate leaves for college and fails to return as promised, Kya is devastated.
Then comes Chase, a charming but arrogant young man from town. Despite her instincts, Kya finds herself drawn to him—loneliness is a powerful thing. But Chase isn’t who he appears to be. He’s manipulative, abusive, and hiding multiple relationships.
Soon after, Chase is found dead at the base of a fire tower. Suspicion falls immediately on Kya, not because of any concrete evidence, but simply because she lives differently—from the town, from society, from expectations.
What follows is a gripping courtroom drama where Kya’s past, her resilience, and the biases of those around her are laid bare.
🐚 A Life Shaped by Solitude
The film is set in the 1960s, and we follow Kya from childhood in the 1950s. Her family initially seems happy—living simply in a peaceful marsh. But when her father returns from war, everything changes. His abuse drives Kya’s mother and siblings away, one by one.
Eventually, even her father disappears. Kya is left alone. She never properly attends school—mocked on her first day, she never returns. Instead, she finds comfort in the marsh, where every plant and bird becomes a part of her quiet universe.
She survives on her own terms, learning to live with nothing but her wits and the natural world around her.
🐦 Tate and the Gifts of Kindness
Tate first appears as a boy who enjoys fishing in the marsh. Later, as a teenager, he reaches out to Kya in the most tender way—leaving her bird feathers in her favorite tree.
They grow close. He teaches her to read. He helps her compile her nature journals into a publishable manuscript. They fall deeply in love.
But when Tate leaves for college, he disappears without a word. Kya is once again left alone.
🧢 Chase – The Danger in Charm
Then enters Chase. Smooth-talking and charming on the surface, but with warning signs all over him. The town sees him as a local heartthrob, but Kya doesn’t know that. She falls for him, and they begin a relationship.
Kya’s illustrations eventually get published, opening a new path for her—one filled with recognition, purpose, and some measure of financial freedom. But her social stigma doesn’t vanish. The townspeople still see her as the "marsh girl." Even Chase’s parents disapprove of their relationship.
Things turn darker when Kya learns of Chase’s other affairs. When she tries to walk away, he turns violent.
⚖️ Spoiler Alert: The Ending Twist
⚠️ Skip this part if you don’t want spoilers!
Just as Chase becomes more aggressive, Tate returns. He explains why he disappeared—life and guilt got in the way. But Kya, now hardened, doesn’t let him in so easily.
Then Chase dies—falling from a fire tower. Kya is accused of murder and brought to trial.
Her lawyer, Tom Milton, argues that the case is built on prejudice, not proof. There’s no physical evidence—just a belief that someone like Kya must be guilty.
With help from kind neighbors and an airtight defense, Kya is found not guilty.
She and Tate reunite, eventually marrying and living out their years in the marsh together. When Kya dies peacefully in her boat, an older Tate finds a small notebook among her belongings. Inside it? A shell necklace Chase used to always wear—one that was missing when his body was found.
Tate realizes what this means: Kya may have killed Chase after all.
But he says nothing. Just tears, silence... and the weight of a secret carried into the marsh.
🎥 Is It Worth Watching?
Absolutely.
The cinematography is stunning. The swamp is presented not as a backdrop, but as a living, breathing character. You’ll want to spend a few days there yourself (minus the murder, of course).
The pacing is slow but steady—like the ebb and flow of marsh tides. It invites you in gently, and by the time you realize how deep you are, it’s too late to stop watching.
🌟 Performance
Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kya is phenomenal.
She brings vulnerability, strength, and mystique to a complex character. Her wide-eyed expressions during the courtroom scenes, her quiet solitude in the marsh, her tentative smile during moments of love—each one felt lived-in and real.
Even if you don’t recognize her from other works, her casting here was absolutely perfect.
- 🎯 Ratings
- IMDb: 7.2
- Rotten Tomatoes: 32% (critics), 96% (audience)
- Metacritic: 43
- But let’s be real—very few films surpass their source material. Condensing a rich novel into a two-hour film is nearly impossible. Personally, I think films should be judged on their own terms, and on that front, this one delivers.
🧭 Final Thoughts: Should You Watch It?
Yes. 100% yes.
Where the Crawdads Sing has it all:
- Beautiful visuals 🌿
- A slow-burning but powerful story 🔥
- A strong female lead 🌊
- A twist that lingers 🌀
Plus, Olivia Newman’s direction brings a quiet grace to the story, balancing sorrow and sweetness in just the right amounts.
Watch it on Netflix—and maybe afterward, go outside and just listen.
Who knows, you might hear the crawdads sing too.
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