DreamWorks Animation's Forgotten Island blends Filipino folklore, vibrant animation, and a lifelong friendship into a heartwarming adventure about the memories that shape our lives.
If one was to look up the word memory in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, they would find the following definition: a: the power or process of reproducing or recalling what has been learned and retained, especially through associative mechanisms; b: the store of things learned and retained from an organism's activity or experience as evidenced by modification of structure or behavior or by recall and recognition. However, everyone knows our memories are more than just a definition in a book or on a website. It begs the question, what would you do if you couldn't remember? What if your memories were taken away? What if you voluntarily chose to give them away to help someone else? DreamWorks Animation makes you ponder those questions with their new film, Forgotten Island.
Raissa (Liza Soberano; Lisa Frankenstein) and Jo (H.E.R.; The Color Purple) have been friends since grade school, when they would always listen to Jo's grandmother, Lola (Dolly De Leon; Triangle of Sadness), tell stories about the mythical island of Nakali and the Manananggal, a Filipino vampire-like creature. As they are now graduating high school, Raissa tells Jo that she is going to college at Caltech in the United States, which upsets Jo. The night before Raissa is supposed to leave, they find the magical sand dollar Lola told them about and end up the next morning on Nakali, having no memory of how they got there or what they did the previous evening. Without knowing where the sand dollar went, the two will spend the day retracing their steps while their friendship is tested.
Soberano and H.E.R. are terrific, and their playful tone throughout most of the film is apparent, giving them the chemistry two young women would have if they were lifelong friends. Dave Franco (Now You See Me 2) lends his vocal talent to the character of Raww, a man/dog who is overcompensating for his low self-esteem. Jenny Slate's (Zootopia) sweet and innocent, sing-song-sounding voice lulls the audience into a false sense of ease, which disguises her true motives that are less than honorable.
Directors and screenwriters Joel Crawford and Januel P. Mercado (Puss in Boots: The Last Wish) offer a heartwarming tale that reminds viewers that not only are friends sometimes just as (if not more) important as family, but that memories are lifelong treasures. For the most part, the pacing is good, but overall, the film is a little bit too long, and the plot has so much going on that it occasionally feels a bit too chaotic.
The visuals are one of the best things about the film, with vibrant colors popping out all over the place. The use of various styles of animation also makes the movie interesting and unique and brings some humor to several of the scenes. The transitions are seamless, which isn't jarring to the viewer and makes the movie more enjoyable. If there is a criticism, it would be that the movie might be scary for younger audience members, and there are a few "adult" jokes that didn't have any business being in a PG-rated movie.
The most important aspect of the story, though, is the lifelong friendship between Raissa and Jo and the memories of their shared experiences. That aspect alone made me leave the theater with a warmth in my soul and a new appreciation for the many happy memories I have made over the years.
Forgotten Island combines well-done animation with a terrific, if not necessarily unique, story that reminds us not to take anything for granted and to savor our memories as cherished and valuable commodities. At the end of the day, it is probably one of the best life lessons there is.
Grade: B+
