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Go behind the scenes of Forgotten Island
Featurette: DreamWorks

Forgotten Island
Directed by Joel Crawford and Januel P. Mercado
Rated PG
Remembered 25 September 2026
#FogottenIsland

Forgotten Island is a breathless ride through a busy landscape of history, ideas and emotions.

The Trojan Chicken

Toward the end of Forgotten Island there’s a scene that comes out of left field. Adorable little truffle-ish-mushroom-ish-looking creatures led by the tiny King Truffle Wuffle seek to attack the protagonists. Liken this lovable army to the Kakamora coconut army in Moana. Having seemingly been left in the dust earlier in the movie, they’re back. And they’re in a (relatively) massive wooden chicken. It’s the Trojan Chicken, as they wheel their secretive tank toward their prey. It’s funny and – in the wake of the monumental success of The Odyssey – it’s also astonishingly timely. As in could they have possibly been planning that scene all along?

Anyway, the Truffle Wuffles’ trick to fool the demons and other characters quickly runs… um… afoul.

But that scene is also emblematic of Forgotten Island as a whole. The movie itself is a sort of Trojan Horse.

On the surface it’s a colorful, action-packed exercise in perpetual motion, humor and character building that’s wholly suitable for children of all ages. Its overarching theme of friendship is totally valid in a society wherein loneliness is becoming a dominant factor.

But within this animated spiritual cousin to the Trojan Horse is a whole lot more. The movie goes into deep themes surrounding life, experiences, memories and Filipino culture that transcend any traditional form of children’s animation. And that’s all the more impressive given this is a DreamWorks production, not Pixar. This is the kind of movie that – at certain levels – is certainly an all-ages movie, but there’s a fascinating component to it that makes it more of a grown-up (not “adult,” but “grown-up”) exercise in animated excellence.

Everything Happens for a Reason

At the beginning of Forgotten Island, the movie throws strong vibes of Moana. The fear is it’ll stay in the shadows of Disney’s superb flick. But that lasts for about two minutes before it’s clear Forgotten Island has its own journey to take. It most certainly comes out from under those shadows with strong form.

It begins with a girl telling her family history in the most animated way possible (see what was done there?). She has a taste for the theatrical. She’s called out the front rows of the classroom as the “splash zone” during her vivid performance. She tells a bizarre story of a magical, supernatural world that’s been forgotten by most mere mortals. There’s even a scary vampire woman with fangs, horrifying wings and a detachable torso.

Her teacher finds it wholly inappropriate. Her fellow students ridicule her. She’s called “dumb” and “crazy.”

Her name is Jo and she’s voiced by R&B star H.E.R. (By the way, H.E.R.’s mother is Filipina.)

The troublemaking Jo is regularly called to the principal’s office, where she’s seen sitting outside the office, awaiting her fate. Over the years and numerous visits, the background of the principal’s office changes to the police department. It’s a fun blink-and-miss-it kind of sight gag.

But, amid all the visual fun, fate enters the picture.

During one of those now routine visits to see her pal the principal, Jo meets Raissa (Liza Soberano). Jo’s an artist with a drive for storytelling. Raissa’s a walking calculator with a brain for science. In short order, they become the best of friends who share many sensibilities despite their art versus science differences.

And with that comes the perfect line from Raissa to Jo: “You had me at disembowelment.”

The Wild Pack

Without question, Forgotten Island is a terrific work of art and entertainment. But it’s so loaded with Filipino cultural references and mythical lore, it’d be great to walk in with a cheat sheet of who all those strange, colorful – at times, almost Hindu – characters are and how they fit into Filipino history.

Among them is Batiba (Jenny Slate), a cat-like creature who collects the memories of others; it’s her only way to experience the world. Bungi (Manny Jacinto) is a three-eyed blue creature-child. Manang (Lea Salonga, the original Miss Saigon) is the devilish vampire Jo used to terrorize her classroom audience. She’s evil and super-imposing as she twists and convulses like a zombie.

There are so many others, but a guy named Prince Mermahn (Kevin McCann) deserves a call-out as well. As his name implies, he’s a merman, one who sports starfish nipples and who is most often criticized for being obnoxiously shallow.

Forgotten Island is a richly flavored kaldereta, a Filipino stew of ideas and themes that resonate and several different animation styles that pop.

Wild from the outset, Forgotten Island piles it on with a conspicuous soundtrack overloaded with American pop hits from the ‘80s and ‘90s. Tunes like Don’t Stop Believing and Never Tear Us Apart easily slip into the story’s themes of living life to the fullest. Suitably, it’s the fuel that’s propelled the cottage industry that is karaoke, which also factors into the action. There’s even a scene from 1987’s Predator, featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger, spliced into the animation.

The Nakali Saga

Amid all the visual flare and mayhem, powerful messaging propels the story forward. It plays out like an animated movie with a mission, a truly uncommon sensation.

The story works through the twists and turns that Jo and Raissa encounter as their lives head in dramatically different directions. Raissa’s set to move to America and study at Caltech. Jo is on the verge of being left behind as she continues to tread water with her storytelling and other artistic efforts.

There’s a backstory for Jo that breaks out the heartache and underscores her perpetual sense of abandonment.

Going back to that Trojan Chicken, it’s also akin to a nested matryoshka doll. Within the overarching theme of the importance of memories and friendship, there’s an underlying dependency to go out and live life.

Explore.

Experience.

Those are the elements that create the memories that define a life.

And, as a movie, it’s the kind of experience that becomes more breathtaking in retrospect. There’s a whole lot to take in during this visit to Forgotten Island. But, yeah, a map would’ve been nice for the more casual tourist to have an easier time navigating this remarkable, vibrant world.

Topping it off, though, there’s also a deep sincerity to all this that goes next level as the end credits start: real-life childhood and other family photos sit alongside the various talent names, ranging from voice performers to the directors, writers and others. It’s a fantastic way to drive it all home.

• Originally published at MovieHabit.com.