Time- 11:10am
Party- 2 (my sister and I)
Introduction
The way this movie came across my radar was kinda special. Definitely unique. It was the first time I came across a skippable ad on YouTube for a movie and I didn’t skip. Not just because it wasn’t some random horror movie I had no interest in seeing- they also did them for Inside Out 2 and other animated movies.
But the moment they started playing the Breakfast Club theme in the ad, I was hooked. I made the reminder note in my iPhone calendar back in, I wanna say June. It was long before the movie and tv trailers.
The last time close to this where I found about a movie this way was The Intern with Anne Hathaway. That more than lived up to the hype.
And I’m extremely pleased to say this movie did too.
I came in with certain expectations about what this movie was going to be about, as you do. Some of those expectations were met and others were surpassed. In some ways I didn’t anticipate and the overall experience was the better for it.
The first trailer was how the two best friends met and growing up together and they somehow find this island they’ve only heard stories about.
Subsequent trailers revealed some of the supporting cast and the magic of the island. Namely, the longer time you spend there, the more you forget. So I thought maybe it was going to be along the lines of Neverending Story Part 2- where Bastian loses one memory every time he wishes for something. In that regard, my summation of the plot was incorrect. Maybe I misinterpreted the trailer or they were slightly deceptive because they did say mortals forget themselves the more time they spend there.
Anyway…
Movie Discussion
The first 15-20 minutes is all backstory and character building. Jo does a presentation about the island for a family history report. Then she winds up at the principals office because she lets loose on a guy who called her out. Then Raissa is sent next because she goes out of her way to defend her.
Then the rest is sort of history. They hit it off and go onto to establish one of the most fun friendships I’d seen in any movie. They have tons of fun experiences and each gets a charm added to their bracelet to commemorate it.
Jo’s grandma, who’d been to the island herself and passed on her stories to them, is another cool character. She gets a similar amount of screen time as Moana’s grandma and leaves just as much impact.
The art style of this movie is very bright and vivid, even before we get to the island. And it’s very snappy and humorous, almost like a manga brought to life at points. Add in the fact they include some great 80s songs- Never Tear Us Apart by INXS winds up becoming the most significant.
Yeah, the more this movie went on, the more I felt like it was tailor made for me. Anytime you include the Breakfast Club theme in something and I’m sold. And it did come up in the actual movie, not just the trailers.
Fast forward a decade or so later, Jo and Raissa are all grown up and their friendship is about to hit some choppy rapids. Raissa, being the genius she is (she makes a highly sophisticated bottle rocket at some point!) gets accepted to Caltech (aka the “Big Bang Theory” university) and is moving to America.
Another reason this movie has been fun is that it sprinkles nuances of Filipino culture in a story that could be considered as universal. I’ve read a number of books at the library the past few years that’ve done similar things and all but one are books I’d definitely love reading again. Other than the occasional inclusion of karaoke, the other big standout is a catchphrase Jo and Raissa say to one another before they go ahead and do something crazy together- tayo na- which means “let’s go” or “we’ll go together, I’m not doing this without you”. Even without the translation, it was enough to figure out with the context.
Jo and Raissa have one final night together before Raissa leaves for school. Naturally this night winds up lasting much longer because after years of searching for a way to the island, it finds them.
Then somehow the movie winds up becoming an animated version of The Hangover- the two of them wake up on the beach, 12 hours had passed, they’re missing the key needed to get home and Raissa has wings for some reason… while all this step retracing was going on, I started to feel slightly underwhelmed. Because this wasn’t the kind of movie I came in expecting. The thought actually crossed my mind- “now that we’re finally at the island, I’m not sure if I like it anymore”- because I thoroughly enjoyed everything else so far.
It took some time but I finally got on board with the plot. The island is full of all kinds of magical creatures and realm with more colors than you can imagine. The travel party that forms consists of a merman (his name is pronounced Mer-mon), some sort of demon baby and a boy/dog named Raww.
I’ll still say this movie felt tailor made for me even with the plot points that took some getting used to… the only thing I’d change is some of the gross-out effects. No bodily fluids thankfully but Bungi the demon baby doing baby things and his cord literally being cut before he joins the adventure plus the talking starfish attached to Merman’s chest being like his version of Ariel’s seashell bra… was that really necessary?
Once the adventure does get going, it’s an absolute blast. The characters are quirky and fun to spend time with. The scenery in place is jaw dropping. It’s so gorgeous. Part of me started to wonder “ok, does this movie have an actual villain?” Because this has been a growing trend in recent years. Even bad guys have good in them or are just misunderstood.
There is a baddie, the great Manang , who is able to split her body in half and can fly even though Raissa somehow took her wings in the course of those 12 missing hours. (Those wings are a little like Doctor Strange’s cape- they have an interesting personality all their own). Fun fact- her voice was done by Lea Salonga- best known for singing Disney princesses. And there is a tribe of critters they run afoul of but they’re too cute to be genuinely threatening.
One of the most interesting creatures is the memory demon Batiba. She trades memories to send wayward mortals back home but she’s also agoraphobic and afraid to leave her cave. At some points, she’s innocent and others she’s more threatening than Manang.
Once Jo and Raissa get their memories back of the last night, their friendship is in freefall. I’ve seen enough movies to know what to expect. That they’ll be ok in the end but it’s disheartening to see them at odds like this because they’d already been through so much.
Most of the standout visuals from the trailers- the charms and the memories and how they’re all connected- not surprisingly, they all stack up during the climax of the movie. It was visually stunning like the rest but there were some emotional spots I didn’t expect and I teared up a bit.
The ending shows how they wind up doing a few years later. We all kinda know Raissa is going to be successful no matter what she does but Jo was the big question mark. She’s a talented artist but she winds up doing various menial jobs she’s not particularly good at. So it’s really satisfying to see her finally finding success doing something she loves. I won’t give away what it is but it was yet another “this movie was made for me” type of thing.
Cue credits and omg, I’m still crying. I mean, it wasn’t perfect but I enjoyed this movie so much. And I think part of me was sorry for it to be over. It’s great that they’re still friends and are able to go back to the island whenever they want. Sometimes I swear I cry more about happy endings than sad ones.
They also had a really good song for the end credits. Throughout the movie, Jo would stamp post-its saying “BRB” before running off somewhere or, in the case of those wings, running off with something. The song is actually called “BRB” and is sung by the two lead actresses, Liza Soberano and H.E.R. (I noticed one of the charms was a guitar pick with H.E.R. written on it, I had no idea it was this direct of a reference).
Also, the credits are full of Polaroids showing the cast and crew and Polaroids were another big thing in the movie.
Another thing I just found out- this movie takes place in the 90s. The Polaroids and the mixed tapes and the boombox should’ve been dead giveaways. And supposedly the island includes a lot of aspects of Filipino folklore. And since I’m a sucker for mythology, that might be something I’ll look more into in the future.
Everyone is assuming Taylor Swift is a lock for best original song and Toy Story 5 is a lock for best animated film at the Oscars…
After seeing this, I dunno… there might be some serious competition to look forward to.
If Forgotten Island stole some of those awards, I don’t think I could be mad but I’d still be conflicted.
Trailers and final remarks
As for trailers…
I don’t really wanna do my usual thing and list them all with comments. I was hoping to at least see one for the next Hunger Games but other than Sense and Sensibility, most are animated movies I’d mentioned in previous posts.
Although the trailer for Wildwood struck me as odd- the advisory sticker with the PG13 rating mentioned brief nudity and suicidal content… granted, it’s being compared to Coraline with the animation style and supposedly it’s going to be the longest animated movie ever at 132 minutes. I have no interest in it but I’m wondering what the hell kind of movie is going to be. Animated movies usually don’t have all that dark stuff in them.
The theater was maybe half full and some people were engaging with it but I’m not sure if they got as much out of it as I did.
Also, the theater gave us 3D glasses charms with our “tickets”. Ticket stubs are no longer a thing, apparently, but that’s a neat little extra.
One last thing before ending this- our mall lost FYE earlier last year. We just found out yesterday that our local GameStop is gone. Almost no stores are carrying dvds anymore.
How long is it going to be when I’ll no longer be able to own movies? I’d love to see Forgotten Island again and have the freedom to see it whenever I want, waterworks be dammed. Part of me is just terrified that there’ll come a time when I’ll never get to see movies more than once because physical media is being done away with.
Grade: a solid A (97/100)
The first 15-20 minutes is all backstory and character building. Jo does a presentation about the island for a family history report. Then she winds up at the principals office because she lets loose on a guy who called her out. Then Raissa is sent next because she goes out of her way to defend her.
Then the rest is sort of history. They hit it off and go onto to establish one of the most fun friendships I’d seen in any movie. They have tons of fun experiences and each gets a charm added to their bracelet to commemorate it.
Jo’s grandma, who’d been to the island herself and passed on her stories to them, is another cool character. She gets a similar amount of screen time as Moana’s grandma and leaves just as much impact.
The art style of this movie is very bright and vivid, even before we get to the island. And it’s very snappy and humorous, almost like a manga brought to life at points. Add in the fact they include some great 80s songs- Never Tear Us Apart by INXS winds up becoming the most significant.
Yeah, the more this movie went on, the more I felt like it was tailor made for me. Anytime you include the Breakfast Club theme in something and I’m sold. And it did come up in the actual movie, not just the trailers.
Fast forward a decade or so later, Jo and Raissa are all grown up and their friendship is about to hit some choppy rapids. Raissa, being the genius she is (she makes a highly sophisticated bottle rocket at some point!) gets accepted to Caltech (aka the “Big Bang Theory” university) and is moving to America.
Another reason this movie has been fun is that it sprinkles nuances of Filipino culture in a story that could be considered as universal. I’ve read a number of books at the library the past few years that’ve done similar things and all but one are books I’d definitely love reading again. Other than the occasional inclusion of karaoke, the other big standout is a catchphrase Jo and Raissa say to one another before they go ahead and do something crazy together- tayo na- which means “let’s go” or “we’ll go together, I’m not doing this without you”. Even without the translation, it was enough to figure out with the context.
Jo and Raissa have one final night together before Raissa leaves for school. Naturally this night winds up lasting much longer because after years of searching for a way to the island, it finds them.
Then somehow the movie winds up becoming an animated version of The Hangover- the two of them wake up on the beach, 12 hours had passed, they’re missing the key needed to get home and Raissa has wings for some reason… while all this step retracing was going on, I started to feel slightly underwhelmed. Because this wasn’t the kind of movie I came in expecting. The thought actually crossed my mind- “now that we’re finally at the island, I’m not sure if I like it anymore”- because I thoroughly enjoyed everything else so far.
It took some time but I finally got on board with the plot. The island is full of all kinds of magical creatures and realm with more colors than you can imagine. The travel party that forms consists of a merman (his name is pronounced Mer-mon), some sort of demon baby and a boy/dog named Raww.
I’ll still say this movie felt tailor made for me even with the plot points that took some getting used to… the only thing I’d change is some of the gross-out effects. No bodily fluids thankfully but Bungi the demon baby doing baby things and his cord literally being cut before he joins the adventure plus the talking starfish attached to Merman’s chest being like his version of Ariel’s seashell bra… was that really necessary?
Once the adventure does get going, it’s an absolute blast. The characters are quirky and fun to spend time with. The scenery in place is jaw dropping. It’s so gorgeous. Part of me started to wonder “ok, does this movie have an actual villain?” Because this has been a growing trend in recent years. Even bad guys have good in them or are just misunderstood.
There is a baddie, the great Manang , who is able to split her body in half and can fly even though Raissa somehow took her wings in the course of those 12 missing hours. (Those wings are a little like Doctor Strange’s cape- they have an interesting personality all their own). Fun fact- her voice was done by Lea Salonga- best known for singing Disney princesses. And there is a tribe of critters they run afoul of but they’re too cute to be genuinely threatening.
One of the most interesting creatures is the memory demon Batiba. She trades memories to send wayward mortals back home but she’s also agoraphobic and afraid to leave her cave. At some points, she’s innocent and others she’s more threatening than Manang.
Once Jo and Raissa get their memories back of the last night, their friendship is in freefall. I’ve seen enough movies to know what to expect. That they’ll be ok in the end but it’s disheartening to see them at odds like this because they’d already been through so much.
Most of the standout visuals from the trailers- the charms and the memories and how they’re all connected- not surprisingly, they all stack up during the climax of the movie. It was visually stunning like the rest but there were some emotional spots I didn’t expect and I teared up a bit.
The ending shows how they wind up doing a few years later. We all kinda know Raissa is going to be successful no matter what she does but Jo was the big question mark. She’s a talented artist but she winds up doing various menial jobs she’s not particularly good at. So it’s really satisfying to see her finally finding success doing something she loves. I won’t give away what it is but it was yet another “this movie was made for me” type of thing.
Cue credits and omg, I’m still crying. I mean, it wasn’t perfect but I enjoyed this movie so much. And I think part of me was sorry for it to be over. It’s great that they’re still friends and are able to go back to the island whenever they want. Sometimes I swear I cry more about happy endings than sad ones.
They also had a really good song for the end credits. Throughout the movie, Jo would stamp post-its saying “BRB” before running off somewhere or, in the case of those wings, running off with something. The song is actually called “BRB” and is sung by the two lead actresses, Liza Soberano and H.E.R. (I noticed one of the charms was a guitar pick with H.E.R. written on it, I had no idea it was this direct of a reference).
Also, the credits are full of Polaroids showing the cast and crew and Polaroids were another big thing in the movie.
Another thing I just found out- this movie takes place in the 90s. The Polaroids and the mixed tapes and the boombox should’ve been dead giveaways. And supposedly the island includes a lot of aspects of Filipino folklore. And since I’m a sucker for mythology, that might be something I’ll look more into in the future.
Everyone is assuming Taylor Swift is a lock for best original song and Toy Story 5 is a lock for best animated film at the Oscars…
After seeing this, I dunno… there might be some serious competition to look forward to.
If Forgotten Island stole some of those awards, I don’t think I could be mad but I’d still be conflicted.
Trailers and final remarks
As for trailers…
I don’t really wanna do my usual thing and list them all with comments. I was hoping to at least see one for the next Hunger Games but other than Sense and Sensibility, most are animated movies I’d mentioned in previous posts.
Although the trailer for Wildwood struck me as odd- the advisory sticker with the PG13 rating mentioned brief nudity and suicidal content… granted, it’s being compared to Coraline with the animation style and supposedly it’s going to be the longest animated movie ever at 132 minutes. I have no interest in it but I’m wondering what the hell kind of movie is going to be. Animated movies usually don’t have all that dark stuff in them.
The theater was maybe half full and some people were engaging with it but I’m not sure if they got as much out of it as I did.
Also, the theater gave us 3D glasses charms with our “tickets”. Ticket stubs are no longer a thing, apparently, but that’s a neat little extra.
One last thing before ending this- our mall lost FYE earlier last year. We just found out yesterday that our local GameStop is gone. Almost no stores are carrying dvds anymore.
How long is it going to be when I’ll no longer be able to own movies? I’d love to see Forgotten Island again and have the freedom to see it whenever I want, waterworks be dammed. Part of me is just terrified that there’ll come a time when I’ll never get to see movies more than once because physical media is being done away with.
Grade: a solid A (97/100)
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