Migration is the new film from Illumination, the animation studio of the Despicable Me franchise and The Super Mario Bros. Movie fame, and it is a charming, beautifully animated and well crafted film that features some great performances from the voice cast, especially Kumail Nanjiani and Elizabeth Banks.

 

The Mallard family of ducks live in an idyllic, safe and secluded pond where their needs are met and nothing ever happens, which is just how Mack Mallard (Kumail Nanjiani) likes it. However, Dax is a precocious and adventurous young duck who constantly frustrates his dad by yearning for life beyond the boundaries of their territory. When a migrating flock of ducks stops by the Mallard family pond on their way to Jamaica, Dax manages to convince his mum (Elizabeth Banks), old Uncle Dan (Danny DeVito) and younger sister to join the flock on their migration, much to the chagrin of Mack.

 

Migration is an original story from writer Mike White (Despicable Me 4) and French animator and director Benjamin Renner, and the film certainly benefits from being untethered to an existing franchise or art style. The script introduces the family as standard, familiar archetypes (dopey dad, sassy mum, rebellious youngster, old curmudgeon) but quickly develops them beyond these as the plot progresses, giving the audience characters to connect with.

 

This shouldn’t be a point of note, but this seems to be an unfortunately overlooked element of writing in some animated films these days, so Migration feels much more well realised in comparison. The story is a simple one in the familiar structure of a road movie, but its endearing characters,  charming art style, excellent voice cast and Renner’s capable direction all coalesce to make Migration a home run.

 

Migration is a charming and beautifully animated original film from Illumination that features strong filmmaking from animator/director Benjamin Renner and great performances from its star cast that certainly deserves to be seen on the big screen.