A new wave of bird-themed animated films have been making their way into cinemas. Among these is Hayao Miyazaki’s possible last cinematic masterpiece, “The Boy and the Heron”; “Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget,” the delightful yet somewhat disappointing successor to the 2000 Aardman favorite; and “Migration,” the latest project by Illumination Studios, who have previously brought us “Despicable Me,” “Minions,” and the hugely successful “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.”
Unlike some of those other films, “Migration” is aimed squarely at a younger audience, without a lot of appeal to the parents in the audience. The film, which centers on the Mallards, a cautious family of ducks who venture out of their New England pond and into the wild, doesn't quite match up to the humor found in comparable animated films. The colorful clan, featuring characters such as timid dad Mack (Kumail Nanjiani), daring mom Pam (Elizabeth Banks), and grumpy Uncle Dan (Danny DeVito), embark on a Caribbean adventure only to wind up lost in New York City.
Despite hilarious encounters with city-dwelling birds, including the feisty pigeon gang leader Chump (Awkwafina) and the imprisoned Jamaican parrot Delroy (Keegan-Michael Key), “Migration” falls a bit short of the bar set by its recent predecessors. It evolves into a simple narrative of the Mallards' misadventure in the Big Apple, dodging a tenacious chef and his private helicopter while gasping at a few moderately comical situations.
The simple plot might fits more as a mildly entertaining TV special rather than a feature film. This is a bit surprising, considering the film's creators. Screenwriter Mike White, known for gems like “School of Rock,” and “The White Lotus,” and co-director Benjamin Renner, the brain behind beautiful animations “Ernest & Celestine” and “The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales,” deliver a fairly predictable and uninspiring adventure.
It's more baffling when “Migration” dares to mimic elements found in various contemporary avian-themed animated films. The Mallards experience a near-fatal encounter with a heron, and later uncover a dark secret at a seemingly idyllic duck farm. These plot points, eerily similar to sequences from “The Boy and The Heron” and “Dawn of the Nugget” respectively, fail to add depth to “Migration.”
The young audience for whom “Migration” is intended might enjoy the vibrant visuals and uncomplicated story, but it lacks the magical spark that leaves children enchanted and adults entertained. While it may be an easy watch, it seems more likely that youngsters will remember their movie theater popcorn more vividly than “Migration.”
