Illumination Studios has made a name for themselves in the last ten years based on their wildly popular Despicable Me franchise and fan favorite, The Secret Life of Pets films. Although audiences love the Minions and their crazy antics, Illumination Studios has never been able to live up to Disney or DreamWorks films or produce content that exceeds the hyperactive kid-friendly genre, other than adapted scripts like The Grinch or The Lorax. They struggle with their original content.
Migration follows the Mallard family, father Mack (Kumail Nanjiani), Pam (Elizabeth Banks), Dax (Caspar Jennings) and Gwen (Tresi Gazal) who decide to leave their safe pond and migrate to Jamaica, despite Mack’s crippling fear of facing the wild.
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Although Migration was not as, to put it bluntly, annoying as Illumination’s other films it also failed to grasp any emotional weight even though it had the potential ingredients for success. A story about a father who is afraid to venture out of his comfort zone, thus preventing his children from pushing boundaries and taking risks is a relatable and powerful theme for any parent.
However, screenwriter Mike White was unable to add in any moments or scenes that capitalized on its family oriented obstacles that could have heightened the bland script. Any explanation on Mack’s fears as a father that could have built a stronger story was omitted completely. Mack telling his children in the beginning of the film about the terrifying monsters that live beyond the pond could have been an amazing opportunity to teach the audience that sometimes reality is different than the stories we are told when we are young. This concept is also never utilized or added to the story.
Migration sets itself up to venture out of the pond for the family to experience these types of “animal dangers” they speak of but instead the villain of the film is a human that doesn’t fit into the story’s exposition, thus substituting for a movie that follows the typically Illumination storytelling, event after event with little depth or thought to expand its story into anything meaningful. The film never takes any risks, confusing the audience as to why venturing beyond the pond sat inside of it the entire time.
Although the animation at times is vibrant and the animators definitely have talent, it was difficult for the visuals to outshine such a dull execution. It is a shame that Illumination continues to be a studio that pushes out kid content that never leaves a lasting impression. Migration is an uneventful journey that is yet another addition to Illumination’s lackluster filmography.
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