For an animation nerd such as myself, Forgotten Island is a very difficult film to quantify, and that’s a very good thing. There truly is nothing else like it in theaters in 2026 or any year, and especially when it comes to big-budget animation. Its ambition, energy, and blessedly unapologetic basis in Filipino culture and Philippine mythology are a joy to watch unfold, even if the film moves a bit too fast for my taste. That pacing may help it win over general audiences, so I’m not going to harp on that but so much.
Inspired in part by the close friendship between co-directors Januel Mercado and Joel Crawford, Forgotten Island follows best friends Jo (voice of H.E.R.) and Raissa (voice of Liza Soberano). As they await Raissa’s impending departure for Caltech, they are magically whisked away to the mystical world of Nakali, an island Jo’s late grandmother Lola (voice of Dolly de Leon) told them stories about as they grew up. The incredible vibrancy of the animation is established well before we arrive in Nakali, and so it’s kind of amazing that Nakali stands out as much as it does. It’s truly as if you’re watching the movie in the best 3D you’ve ever seen, even when it’s in 2D. I bet it would soar on a great 3D setup. Even though I don’t think it’s a perfect movie, thinking about it now, I would love to see it again in 3D.
At any rate, when our heroes wake up on a beach in Nakali, they are greeted by Raww (voice of Dave Franco), a hyperactive were-dog who tells them that they had an incredible night of partying the night before. There’s a mystery as to why Jo and Raissa can’t remember it, but the film backgrounds that as it takes us in and around the key areas of Nakali in their quest to find the item which transported them in the first place. The film is similar in style to Crawford’s Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, the Spider-Verse franchise, or any number of animated films in the past several years which have blended three-dimensional computer animation with signifiers of hand-drawn techniques. A key difference here is that it feels less like a sketch and more like neon light, but always maintains the graphic quality of its lighting and environments. There are two-dimensional snippets as well, but these are typically used only for comedic effect.
Those snippets are one of a fair few elements which make the film just a bit too snappy for its own good. There are a bevy of fun and interesting side characters on our quest, but for as entertaining and funny as they can be, none of them are anywhere near as gripping as Jo and Raissa’s friendship, and they have a tendency to drown out that beautiful core of the film. Regardless, when the film does hit on its core, it’s dynamite, and it’ll probably remind you of your own best friend. It certainly did that for me, and that kind of emotional hook is always half the battle. Of course, this film accomplishes much more than just that in terms of its cultural representation and brilliant animation, but Forgotten Island might have run the risk of being forgotten itself if it didn’t have that heart. | George Napper
