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‘Forgotten Island’ Review: H.E.R. And Dave Franco Give Life To Gorgeously Animated And Frenetic ‘Toon
DreamWorks’ *Forgotten Island* is an original animated adventure about Jo and Raissa, two lifelong best friends in the Philippines who face being separated after finishing school. Their final night together leads them through a magical portal to Nakali, the mythical island they imagined as children, where they must recover their memories and find a way home. The film’s themes of friendship, change and the importance of memory give its frenetic fantasy a more emotional foundation.
Jo, voiced by H.E.R., is an impulsive fast-food worker, while Raissa, voiced by Liza Soberano, is a serious aspiring scientist accepted at Caltech. On Nakali they encounter a shape-shifting weredog called Raww, a cycloptic giant baby, an agoraphobic collector of stolen memories and a series of eccentric rulers and creatures, alongside the villainous Manananggal, voiced by Lea Salonga. The review praises the film’s colourful Filipino influences, energetic animation and inventive characters, while suggesting its relentless visual and narrative pace may appeal most strongly to teenage girls.
In short
- Two friends enter a mythical island before their lives split apart.
- The animated adventure explores memory, friendship and change.
- Filipino influences and frantic visuals drive its imaginative world.
Explained simply
DreamWorks’ Forgotten Island is an animated fantasy about Jo and Raissa, best friends in the Philippines facing the prospect of going separate ways after school. A portal takes them to Nakali, a magical island they had imagined as children, where they search for a way home and for memories that have been lost.
Jo is voiced by H.E.R. and Raissa by Liza Soberano; the island’s strange inhabitants include Raww, a shape-shifting weredog, and the villainous Manananggal, voiced by Lea Salonga. The story draws on Filipino folklore and explores how friendship can change as people grow up, with memory helping connect its fantastical adventure to the friends’ lives.