Patos!

I recently watched the movie Migration (2023) in theaters with my daughter. The storyline follows a northeastern family of ducks 🦆 who encounter a flock of migrating birds that invite them to fly south for the winter. Despite their usual winter stay, the family convinces the dad to fly to Jamaica 🇯🇲 this year, and an adventure ensues.

This movie is co-directed by Benjamin Renner (Ernest & Celestine) and Guylo Homsy (Eddie's Life Coach) and features the voices of Kumail Nanjiani (Stuber), Danny DeVito (Twins), Awkwafina (Crazy Rich Asians), Keegan-Michael Key (Wonka), and Elizabeth Banks (The Hunger Games).

The animation in this picture is outstanding, while the rest of the film is fairly average. The storyline is straightforward, with a few worthwhile subplots. I particularly enjoyed the husband and wife working together through various circumstances for the betterment of the family. The voices are well selected, and Awkwafina and DeVito comedic content keep the film well-paced. The conclusion is as expected, though its sequel potential remains uncertain.

In conclusion, Migration is a fun family animated picture with enough worthwhile elements to make it worth a watch, but it doesn't stand out in the genre. I would score this a 5.5/10 and recommend seeing it once.

Migration is just a simple adventure, but still an enjoyable film on its own. It does have a predictable story and an unneeded villain for a movie about migrating. But it still provides things to be a decent film thanks to great animation, some cute jokes that I at least chuckled, and as someone that loves to travel, it does have the heart of venturing the world. I think it would be worth watching at least once. But I do think that the kids will love it for the funny characters and a tale that they will easily get into more than adults would. Like The Super Mario Bros Movie and the other films Illumination has made, it's not the best movie of the year. I do think this movie is pretty simple, but pretty cute for a migrate adventure.

"Migration" is a charming animated film that follows a family of ducks on an adventurous journey to find their new home. With delightful characters and stunning visuals, it captures themes of family, courage, and the importance of sticking together, making it a heartwarming experience for audiences of all ages.

On IMDb, "Migration" has received positive reviews for its engaging story and vibrant animation. Critics highlight the film's humor and emotional depth, praising its ability to resonate with both children and adults. The voice cast's performances further elevate the narrative, making it a standout in the animated film genre.

'Migration' is a really well-made family film. It's a simple premise about anthropomorphic ducks - the father duck, Mack (Nanjiani), wants to protect his children/chicks, Dax (Jennings) and Gwen (Gazal), and the mother duck, Pam (Banks), wants them to experience the world and gain some experience. They meet some other ducks migrating south for the winter - they're presumably in North-Eastern USA - so they decide to do the same, with quirky uncle Dan (DeVito) in tow.

What follows is both a semi-familiar road-trip comedy, as well as a refreshing take on family, trying new things and helping others. There's a great support cast, as the duck family passes through New York City and meets Chump the pigeon (Awkwafina), Delroy the macaw (Key), as well as Erin the heron (Kane) and GooGoo (Mitchell) - either a goose or a white duck. There's a nice jail-break sequence for Delroy, which sets up the human antagonist, the Chef.

For some reason the Chef also has a Chinook and hunts them down, leading to Dax and Gwen having to step-up. The animation is a nice mix of cartoonish and realistic, and it looks excellent, especially at the end. There's no overly-scary moments, some teachable themes, the voice cast is all good and there's consistent laughs throughout. There's also 'Mooned', the 9-min 'Despicable Me' tie-in at the start of the film, which kids seemed to love.

Overall, not a half bad illumination movie.

The movie's environments were beautiful. Easily my favorite part of the movie. I loved the watercolor-esque trees. Also, the designs of some of the humans, especially the main antagonist, are pretty nice and creative. The jokes weren't nearly as "cringey", and landed for the most part. (hah, get it, cause the movies about ducks... migrating). The humor in this movie feels more family-focused, rather than purely for the kids.

As for the negatives, the story is fairly linear, and not too interesting. The overall theme is very obvious, so it isn't too deep. All in all, a typical illumination movie.

Overall, a decent Illumination movie. Just plain family fun. If you want to be fairly entertained, and laugh with your kiddos, this is a good movie.