Forgotten Island

by Hope Madden

Who knew that an animated/anime mashup of John Hughes and The Hangover would amount to such a blast of a kids’ movie?

Forgotten Island is nothing if not weird.

The latest from DreamWorks follows two lifelong besties. Wild child Jo (H.E.R.) and introverted genius Raissa (Liza Soberano) have always brought out the best in each other, and they’ve strung together countless memories. They’ll have one last night for memory making, because tomorrow Raissa leaves their small Philippine town for college at CalTech. Jo will continue her work as the chicken mascot at a local fast-food place.

Until…a portal opens to the fantastical world of Nakali, and the friends wake up 12 hours later with no memory of the night before and no idea where they left the amulet that can get them home.

Like writers/directors Joel Crawford and Januel P. Mercado’s last feature, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, Forgotten Island is a constantly surprising, beautifully structured, startlingly powerful film. It’s also irreverent enough to offend some, and randomly set in the late 1980s. (Both fine by me!)

The wild hijinks on Nakali work because of the investment in these two characters back home. This isn’t a one-note odd couple, but two finely crafted characters with a lived-in friendship. And once the film hits the island, the filmmakers’ gift for unexpected, often downright weird, adventure shines.

Jenny Slate lends her perfect-for-animation voice, as does Dave Franco, both delighting in a cast of characters drawn from Filipino folklore. The characters, their misadventures, and the vibrant animation style offer an almost dizzying joy. Nothing’s predictable, nothing’s phoned in.

But, like Last Wish, there’s depth to the pathos on the screen and that’s what gives Forgotten Island lasting power. The filmmakers take a coming-of-age staple and find its humanity. Even with all the awful 80s music, Forgotten Island hits not one false note.