Archive for animation

Film Review – Forgotten Island

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , , , , , , , , , on September 18, 2026 by Reel Review Roundup

Forgotten Island (PG)

Directed by: Joel Crawford and Januel P. Mercado

Starring: H.E.R., Liza Soberano

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Review by: Julian Wright

Buckle in for a colourful ride into a fantasy world with two besties and a collection of quirky sidekicks in Forgotten Island.

Set in the Philippines in the 1990s, Forgotten Island centres on two young girls who don’t have any friends of their own that find each other and become lifelong, inseparable BFFs.

Jo (H.E.R.) is the outgoing one that gets them both into a bit of trouble, while Raissa (Liza Soberano) is the studious one along for the adventures.

When they reach their teens, Raissa is getting ready to move to the USA for college, a move that may break her bond with Jo.

The night before she is set to board a plane to college, Jo drags her out of the house for one last adventure and the two are magically teleported to Nakali, a forgotten island in another world.

Waking up 12 hours later with no memory of their night, just a few polaroid pictures of their adventures, the two must retrace their steps to find the item that can get them back home in time for Raissa to catch her flight.

Forgotten Island is inspired by a few other movies, including The Wizard of Oz, but most amusingly, The Hangover, ensuring that parents can get a few chuckles along the way.

This is a high energy rollercoaster adventure that is told with vibrant animation, and some beautiful anime imagery woven in, that proves girls can have hi-octane adventures too, while exploring the strength and importance of female bonds and chosen family.

The characters, including the quirky island residents they meet along the way, are loveable and endearing, and each voiced by a game cast member.

Forgotten Island is not a bad place to be stranded for a couple of hours with the kids.

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Film Review – Memoir of a Snail

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , , , , on October 16, 2024 by Reel Review Roundup

Memoir of a Snail (M)

Directed by: Adam Elliot

Starring: Sarah Snook, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Eric Bana

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Review by: Julian Wright

Prepare for an emotional roller-coaster ride all played out in eye popping stop-motion animation.

“Plain Jane” Grace (Sarah Snook), a young woman from Australia in the 1970s, narrates the highs and (mostly) lows of her turbulent youth.

Her gentle voice guides us through her fascination with snails borne out of her mother’s death, home life with her twin brother Gilbert (Kodi Smit-McPhee) and widowed, alcoholic father Percy (Dominique Pinon), his death, the twins’ separation and living with different families on opposite sides of the country.

Grace finally finds an ally in Pinky (Jacki Weaver), an elderly free-spirit with a few quirks of her own.

Memoir of a Snail is at times almost unbearably tragic, and others, hilarious to the point of side-splitting.

As dark and hopeless as Grace’s experiences get, there is a sweet innocence and nonchalance about her, making her experience and her reactions to them even more astounding.

As jaw dropping as the artistry is, the unpolished look of the stop-motion material adds to the melancholic atmosphere.

Writer/director Adam Elliot’s beautiful film is so richly detailed, from the script (story, characters, emotions, dialogue) to the visual (production design), that it demands a second viewing.

Not a single inch of frame is left unfilled with handmade furniture, props, background visual gags and more, and yet, it never feels cluttered or the tone shifts ever jarring.

Elliot’s masterful achievement is kooky and quirky in the best way – its slightly unhinged take makes for one of the freshest and most endearing films you will see this year.

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