Jonah Naplan   December 23, 2023

“Migration,” the newest animated film from Illumination—the people behind such hits as the “Despicable Me” franchise, and its proceeding (or preceding) “Minions” prequels, as well as a double feature of “The Secret Life of Pets” and “Sing” movies, in addition to “The Grinch” and this year’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” which became the second highest grossing animated film of all time in a matter of months—follows a plot so familiar that you already know how it’s gonna end before you even walk into the theater. The frustrating thing is that the movie doesn’t add anything new or interesting to those shopworn clichés, despite the talent of screenwriter Mike White, who wrote the 2003 cult classic “School of Rock” as well as the popular current series “The White Lotus.”

Sure, it’s ultimately harmless, both for the kids and for the parents who got dragged along, but as the one big children's film to be released this Christmas weekend (we always tend to get one of these each year), it should be much better, or, at the very least, far more memorable. “Migration” is a movie that always seems to be doing just the bare minimum, checking off the mandatory boxes to move from point A to point B in only a mere hair over 90 minutes. And for a studio that has proven in the past they can produce something above average, their latest effort falls especially short of that creativity. At times it feels like a project that would go straight to Netflix, while at others it gives the aura of one that would release exclusively to DVD—an obsolete medium, no less! It is lazy, and ultimately a sad sight to see.

The film centers on a quintet of mallard ducks; overly cautious patriarch Mack (Kumail Nanjiani), daring matriarch Pam (Elizabeth Banks), their two children Dax (Caspar Jennings) and Gwen (Tresi Gazal), and Uncle Dan (Danny DeVito), who live safe in the confines of their pond residence, having never left because of Mack’s severe—and virtually unrealistic—concerns about the dangers of the outside world. When another duck family makes a pit stop in their pond, they tell the Mallards all about their annual migration to Jamaica, ultimately, with some additional prompting from Pam et al., influencing Mack to pull the stick out of his butt, and bring the family along on a trip to the island himself.

Of course, they encounter some obstacles along the way, all of which are mini movies in and of themselves. A heron played by Carol Kane holds them captive for a night, while a detour to New York City pulls things straight out of “Ratatouille” and, strangely, “The Nut Job”—if ever there was an animated movie that could stoop so low and so high simultaneously, it’s this one—and most of the jokes are either cheap slapstick or, if we’re lucky, a decent enough sight gag, but still nothing that the kids or certainly the half-asleep parent won’t forget by Boxing Day. The Big Apple is where the Mallards have a brief run-in with the leader of a sort of pigeon cult named Chump (Awkwafina, the go-to voice actress for most commercial animated features these days), who assists them in breaking into a popular Manhattan restaurant to free a Jamaican parrot named Delroy (Keegan-Michael Key, leaning all into a Caribbean accent), the tortured pet of the kitchen’s head cook, who takes after the flock in his branded helicopter when they escape his grasp.

Director Benjamin Renner brings little distinct charm or personality to any part of this dully rendered animated movie, and his bland visuals lack what so many other animated outings this year deserve prizes for: wonder. Ducks have long been inherently entertaining creatures; that’s why Looney Tunes and the Mickey Mouse club adopted mallard members. But they’ve never seemed this bored. In their defense, they’ve been unfairly cheated by being put in a story this lifeless, one that forces a muzzle over their charm. But they’ve also been scammed emotionally; the movie applies little to no pathos to the good of their well-being—even kids will find it rather hard to root for the Mallard family.

Ditto all the talented voice actors who are doubly betrayed by such a lousy span of events, not allowing them to showcase any modicum of individuality, despite bringing 110% energy to their roles. There is much about “Migration” that draws back to classic road trip pictures of yore, even when the movie is doing nothing at all, but the nostalgia is unearned; a lazy excuse to make any drowsy adults in the audience cock an eyebrow.

Parents, if you’re looking for a good movie for the kids to watch this holiday weekend, I’d highly recommend checking out “Wonka” or revisiting any Christmas classic (some of which might actually have one or two matinee showtimes at your local theater) like “A Christmas Story,” “Elf,” “Home Alone,” or, if you’re feeling spicy, the always underrated “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” instead. By choosing to watch and review “Migration,” I neglected to do the same.

Now playing in theaters.