Forgotten Island Review: DreamWorks Delivers Vibrant, Emotional Animated Magic

H.E.R. and Liza Soberano lead a spectacular animated adventure that blends unforgettable friendship, Filipino mythology and breathtaking visuals.

DreamWorks Animation has delivered something truly special with Forgotten Island. This breathtaking, hilarious, and deeply emotional adventure celebrates the power of friendship through spectacular animation, rich Filipino mythology, and an unforgettable world bursting with imagination.

I had the unique opportunity to experience an unfinished version of Forgotten Island at CinemaCon, and I absolutely loved what I saw. However, watching the completed film made me love it 10 TIMES MORE.

Everything that impressed me during that early screening has come together beautifully. The vibrant animation, nostalgic 1990s setting, incredible voice performances, and emotionally powerful storytelling create a genuinely magical experience.

Written and directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, the creative duo behind Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, Forgotten Island proves once again that DreamWorks knows how to deliver an animated adventure with extraordinary visual ambition and tremendous heart.

The film follows Jo (H.E.R.) and Raissa (Liza Soberano), two lifelong best friends preparing to take separate paths after graduating high school. During their final night together, they stumble upon a mysterious portal that transports them to Nakali, a fantastical island filled with creatures from Filipino mythology.

Their journey takes an unexpected turn when they discover that returning home comes at a devastating price: losing the memories of their entire friendship.

What follows is a wildly imaginative adventure that effortlessly combines hilarious comedy, spectacular action, meaningful cultural storytelling, and the emotional challenges of growing up. It is magical, relatable, and overflowing with genuine emotion.

H.E.R. and Liza Soberano Are the Heart of the Film

Forgotten Island’s greatest strength is the beautiful friendship at the center of its story.

H.E.R. and Liza Soberano deliver outstanding voice performances as Jo and Raissa, bringing extraordinary personality, warmth, and authenticity to their characters.

H.E.R. makes Jo an energetic, impulsive, and fiercely loyal protagonist whose confidence occasionally masks her fear of losing the person who has always been by her side. Her performance moves effortlessly between playful comedy and genuine vulnerability.

Soberano is equally fantastic as Raissa, a determined young woman excited about her future but struggling to confront what leaving her childhood behind might mean for her closest friendship.

Their chemistry is remarkable.

Every conversation feels natural, every disagreement carries genuine weight, and every emotional exchange reinforces just how much these characters mean to one another.

What makes their performances particularly impressive is their ability to embrace the exaggerated energy of animation without losing the human qualities that make their characters believable.

The voice acting throughout the film is phenomenal. The performances are emotional, hilarious, occasionally outrageous, and consistently authentic. The actors know exactly when to push the comedy and when to let quieter moments speak for themselves.

Every interaction has tremendous personality, but the emotional moments never feel forced.

You believe in this friendship, and that makes the possibility of losing it all the more devastating.

Dave Franco Nearly Steals the Entire Movie as Raww

While H.E.R. and Soberano provide the emotional foundation, Dave Franco delivers some of the film’s biggest laughs as Raww, an awkward weredog who desperately wants everyone to believe he is a fearless lone wolf.

Franco is absolutely hilarious. His performance is bursting with outrageous energy, impeccable comedic timing, and an exaggerated confidence that makes Raww one of the film’s most entertaining characters.

Whether he is trying to establish himself as a dangerous creature or dealing with the embarrassment of his unpredictable transformations, Franco commits fully to the character’s ridiculous personality.

Yet beneath Raww’s hilarious exterior is a surprisingly vulnerable individual searching for friendship and a sense of belonging.

That emotional depth makes the character more than simple comic relief. Raww becomes an essential part of the story’s exploration of friendship and the need to feel accepted.

Franco strikes a wonderful balance between absurd comedy and genuine sincerity, making Raww a character you laugh at, root for, and ultimately grow attached to.

The supporting cast is equally impressive.

Manny Jacinto brings enormous personality and surprising tenderness to Bungi, while Jenny Slate, Dolly de Leon, Jo Koy, Ronny Chieng, Kevin McCann and Lea Salonga help fill this remarkable world with an unforgettable collection of characters.

Every character has something memorable to offer, and the talented ensemble makes the island feel alive with distinct personalities.

The comedy is wildly entertaining, but the performances also understand the film’s emotional foundation. Even the most outrageous characters are given opportunities to reveal something meaningful beneath their exaggerated personalities.

Filipino Mythology Creates a Mesmerizing World

One of the film’s greatest achievements is the extraordinary world DreamWorks has created. Nakali is absolutely mesmerizing.

The island is bursting with imaginative environments, magical creatures, breathtaking landscapes, and fascinating details that make every new location feel like a discovery.

The rich Filipino mythology is especially wonderful, giving the film a distinctive identity while introducing audiences to an incredible collection of legendary beings.

From towering Kapre and mischievous Duwende to the fearsome Manananggal, the filmmakers embrace the mythology’s remarkable variety and transform it into a world filled with humor, danger, beauty, and heart.

These creatures are far more than background attractions. They have personalities, emotional struggles, and stories of their own, making every encounter a chance to discover something extraordinary.

The mythology also serves the film’s larger themes beautifully.

Memories, family, identity, and the importance of human connection weave throughout the adventure, ensuring the cultural elements feel essential to the story rather than simply decorative.

The result is an original fantasy world that feels both refreshingly different and emotionally familiar.

I was completely captivated by Nakali and genuinely wanted to spend more time exploring it. So much imagination is packed into this island that it feels as though countless other adventures are waiting to be discovered.

I would absolutely love to return to this world and explore even more of its fascinating mythology, creatures, and spectacular environments. DreamWorks has created something with incredible potential, and I hope this is not our only visit.

The Animation Is Absolutely Breathtaking

Visually, Forgotten Island is an animated masterpiece. The animation is vibrant, punchy, incredibly detailed, and overflowing with personality. Every environment feels meticulously crafted, and the film’s striking colors immediately distinguish it from more traditionally styled animated adventures.

The character animation is equally impressive, with exaggerated expressions and fluid movements that perfectly complement the film’s energetic comedy.

However, what truly elevates the experience is the filmmakers’ brilliant decision to embrace multiple animation styles.

Rather than maintaining one consistent visual approach, the film shifts between different artistic techniques to give particular sequences their own identity.

The creative team uses anime-inspired animation for three distinctive flashback sequences involving members of the Wild Pack. Philippines-based Snipple Animation produced these sequences, adding another layer of Filipino artistry to the production.

The results are spectacular.

The contrasting animation styles inject even more personality into the adventure while allowing the filmmakers to experiment with exaggerated action, hilarious visual comedy, and different storytelling methods.

These sequences are among the film’s most exciting creative achievements.

The environments are just as impressive. The combination of lush tropical landscapes, neon-inspired colors, expressive character designs, and extraordinary creature animation makes Nakali an absolute visual feast.

The attention to detail is remarkable, but the film never sacrifices personality in pursuit of technical perfection.

Everything feels alive.

Crawford and Mercado demonstrated their talent for pushing animation forward with Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, and Forgotten Island once again showcases their remarkable understanding of the medium.

They know how to deliver spectacular visuals while ensuring that every artistic decision strengthens the characters and their story. This is exactly the kind of ambitious animation I love seeing on the big screen.

The Nostalgia and Music Make the Experience Even More Magical

The film’s nostalgic 1990s setting is another major highlight. Something wonderfully infectious about the atmosphere, from its energetic personality to the clever Easter eggs and little details that capture the spirit of the era.

The nostalgia is fun, but it also serves a meaningful purpose.

By setting the story before smartphones and social media, the filmmakers emphasize a time when maintaining friendships often required more deliberate effort. It adds another layer of emotional weight to Jo and Raissa’s relationship, particularly as they prepare to enter adulthood and face the possibility of growing apart.

For anyone who grew up during that era, there are plenty of delightful touches to appreciate.

And the music absolutely rocks.

Composer Nathan Matthew David delivers a fantastic score that beautifully blends nostalgic sounds, sweeping orchestral arrangements, and traditional Filipino musical influences.

The filmmakers incorporate Indigenous Filipino instruments, chanting, and musical traditions into the score, giving Nakali a distinctive sound that feels inseparable from the world itself.

The music heightens the excitement during the adventure sequences, makes the comedic moments even more entertaining, and delivers tremendous emotional impact when the story demands it.

Everything works together beautifully. The animation, nostalgia, and music create a wonderfully immersive experience that feels energetic, imaginative, and genuinely heartfelt. It is impossible not to get swept up in this adventure.

A Powerful Story About Friendship That Hits Hard

For all its extraordinary animation, hilarious characters, and fantastical creatures, Forgotten Island’s greatest achievement is its deeply relatable human story.

At its core, this is a film about the friendships that help shape who we become and the fear that growing up might mean leaving those connections behind. The film’s themes are something almost everyone can understand.

Whether you have had a childhood friend move away, followed a different path from someone you once considered inseparable, or wondered whether an important relationship could survive the passage of time, the film finds an emotional connection that extends far beyond its magical setting.

Jo and Raissa’s journey is particularly moving because neither character is wrong for wanting something different.

Growing up means embracing new opportunities, but it can also mean confronting the terrifying possibility that the people who once knew us better than anyone might eventually become strangers.

The film explores those emotions with remarkable sincerity.

It understands that friendship requires effort, that memories carry enormous meaning, and that holding on to the past can sometimes be just as difficult as learning to move forward.

What impressed me most was how naturally the story balances these powerful themes with its outrageous comedy.

One moment, I was laughing at Raww’s ridiculous antics and the island’s extraordinary creatures. The next, I found myself completely invested in Jo and Raissa’s emotional struggles.

The emotional moments hit hard.

In fact, I found myself holding back a few tears as the adventure unfolded which is what makes this film so special.

The story never forgets the importance of its characters, even as the action grows more spectacular and the mythology introduces another wonderfully bizarre creature.

The emotions run strong from start to finish, giving the entire adventure a beautiful sense of purpose.

It is heartfelt, powerful, and genuinely moving without sacrificing the infectious sense of fun that makes the journey so enjoyable.

The Only Real Flaw Is Its Pacing

As much as I adored Forgotten Island, one noticeable issue keeps it from achieving complete perfection. The pacing becomes slightly uneven toward the end.

For the majority of its runtime, the film moves at an exhilarating pace, transitioning effortlessly between hilarious comedy, exciting action, spectacular discoveries, and emotionally meaningful character moments.

Something interesting is always happening, and the adventure rarely loses momentum.

However, the final stretch feels a little too drawn out.

Just when the story appears ready to conclude, it continues extending its resolution, creating a noticeable contrast with the film’s otherwise energetic pacing.

A slightly tighter ending could have delivered an even stronger finish. Fortunately, this is a relatively minor criticism.

The emotional payoff remains incredibly satisfying, and the characters are so lovable that spending a little extra time with them is hardly the worst problem an animated adventure could have.

The pacing issue does little to diminish the tremendous creativity, humor, and heart that make the overall experience so extraordinary.

Verdict

Some movies entertain you for a couple of hours. Others leave you thinking about the people who helped shape your life. Forgotten Island accomplishes both, reminding us that growing up doesn’t have to mean letting go of the friendships that made us who we are.

What impressed me most was how effortlessly the film made me laugh one moment and fight back tears the next. Even with a slightly prolonged ending, its emotional payoff feels completely earned. Having experienced an unfinished version at CinemaCon, seeing the completed film only strengthened my appreciation for what these filmmakers have accomplished.

Forgotten Island is the kind of movie I want to experience again, share with friends, and revisit for years to come. It made me laugh, nearly brought me to tears, and reminded me why I fell in love with animated storytelling in the first place.

Forgotten Island releases in theaters on September 25.

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