Migration

One thing about Illumination Animation is that they have proven themselves time and again with amazing artistry coupled with incredible stories that are so watchable, i.e. the 'Despicable Me' franchise, the 'Minions" franchise, "The Lorax", "Sing". "The Secret Life of Pets", and many others. I loved those films, so when "Migration" was released, I felt I would not be disappointed, and I was right.

A family of Mallard ducks, Mack (Kamail Nanjani), Pam (Elizabeth Banks), Uncle Dan (Danny DeVito), Dax (Caspar Jennings) and Gwen (Tresi Gazal) decide to leave the safety of a New England pond for an adventurous trip to Jamaica, however their well-laid plans quickly go awry when they get lost and wind up in New York City. They meet Chump (Awkwafina), a feisty pigeon to guide them in the right direction, and the experience soon inspires them to expand their horizons, open themselves up to new friends such as Leroy (Keegan-Michael Key), and accomplish more than they ever thought possible. 

Others to round out the cast are Carol Kane as Erin, David Mitchell as GooGoo, Isabela Merced as Kim and Carlos Alazraqui as Additional Voices. 

This was delineated with amazing clarity by Benjamin Renner ("Ernest & Celestine" '12, "The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales" '17) plus a short, and co-directed by Guylo Homsy (a video), even though neither director has a plethora of experience behind the camera, especially Homsy, who came from an animated visual effects background, they were still able to produce a well paced and sequenced animated story. These artists can only improve with more work which would serve them. The connection between the different family members seemed amazingly effortless. It was brilliantly written by Mike White ("Dead Man on Campus" '98, "Chuck & Buck" 2000, "Orange County" '02, "The Good Girl" '02, "School of Rock" '03, "Nacho Libre" '06, "Year of the Dog" '07, "The Emoji Movie" '07, "Brad's Status" '07, "Mamma Dallas" (TV movie) '16, "Beatriz At Dinner" '17, "The Emoji Movie" '17, "Brad's Status" '17, "Pitch Perfect 3" '17, "The One and Only Ivan"'20) plus TV, based on a story by Mike White and Benjamin Renner. Clearly White headed up an amazing experience here,  where White is one of those handful of writers that can and does think outside the box--one can never pigeon-hole this honed writer. One of the best films he's ever written is "School of Rock" '03, which he wrote for his buddy, Jack Black, who was born to play that role. Undoubtedly, he will write another script, and it will only be our guess at what the film could be about, will it be live-action or animated? Who knows, but this is the charm of this artist--not knowing, so the surprise element will be that much more evident. And Illumination Animation is so clever in presenting their animation in that it's always so creative and keeps the audience wanting for more.

If you like animated flicks, and more to the point, if you like Illumination's take on how they produce their work, you will revel with this one. The trailer sells the film, but in some ways, it doesn't. Trust me, this is a great film for the whole family replete with adventure, warmth, love and redemption all rolled up in one entertaining and well thought out story.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                 Rated: PG                              93mins. (including a 10min short entitled "Mooned" directed by Jonathan Del Val)