'Forgotten Island' review: Filipino culture gets a colorful, energetic welcome

MANILA, Philippines — Friendship and Filipino folklore are at the forefront of "Forgotten Island," DreamWorks Animation's newest movie that dives into the depths of Philippine culture and mythology.

Two young girls Raissa and Jo (Kayla Teruel and Kailey Crawford) bond over the mythological stories told by the latter's Lola Fatima (Dolly de Leon), cementing themselves as inseparable, mischevious best friends.

Their relationship is put to the test upon graduating high school as Raissa (now voiced by Liza Soberano) plans to study in Caltech all the way in the United States, much to the lonely Jo's (Gabrielle Sarmiento Wilson, the Filipino-American artist known as H.E.R.).

They party for one last time before parting ways and in the process, finds a portal to the mysterious island of Nakali, which Lola Fatima had told them about years ago. Their adventure in the mysterious island begins with challenging predicament — they have no memories of the last 12 hours.

In an effort to retrace their steps, they tap a wer-aspin named Raww (Dave Franco) to take them around the island filled with creatures from Philippine folklore, including the Dreaded Mananggal called Manang (a fearsome Lea Salonga), whom everyone avoids.

"Forgotten Island" marks a tremendous milestone for displaying Filipino culture in such an animated fashion, serving as a gateway not just into the everyday lives of Filipinos but the mythological stories many young Pinoys have grown up hearing.

Stunning animation from Dreamworks do Philippine icons justice to huge degrees, from the warm colors of Manila in the '80s and '90s to explosive colors abound in Nakali.

Directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, the latter also a Filipino-American, employ different animation styles, which lend to the film's expansive creativity.

The movie leans into anime-style segments, improved 3D animation, and even traditional 2D drawings, which were developed by Quezon City-based studio Snipple.

So much going on could be a detriment to the average viewer, but one could hit the pause button and see how much Filipino references were put into each frame — from the lip-pointing and delicacies to arnis sticks and more mythical creatures.

The spotlight shifts from the animation to the emotional core of the storyn— the friendship between Jo and Raissa — as the film enters its latter stages, to a quick-paced ending that feels disjointed from the first two-thirds.

Still, it is reminiscent of the work Crawford and Mercado did for their last film, "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish," which also marked a progessive uptick for DreamWorks as a studio.

Landmark animated features like "KPop Demon Hunters" and the "Spider-Verse" films also come to mind, putting "Forgotten Island" in good company.

One point of contention is the pronunciation of Tagalog words by the part-Filipino cast members, which in hindsight, is a non-factor given the massive steps the film does to introduce Filipino culture to the world.

H.E.R. and Liza feel right at home in voice work, though the movie could have used more of Dolly and Lea (the latter featuring more prominently in the Indigenous-inspired score by Filipino-American composer Nathan Matthew David).

Lea's Manang offered the right kind of terror to keep younger viewers on their toes while driving melancholy from older audiences for the fear of the kind of individuals we can become from lost memories.

Of the supporting cast, Jenny Slate's Batiba is equally terrifying as Filipino-Canadian Manny Jacinto's Bungi the Tiyanak and Kevin McCann's Kataw Prince Mermahn are hilarious.

There is tremendous hope that "Forgotten Island" opens doors to what the Philippines has to offer beyond beauty queens and boxers, because the country's richness can truly be found in its people and the cultural ties they all share.

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