Illumination’s migration marks a change. Financially, the studio behind such franchises as Despicable Me and Sing is doing very well: their Super Mario Bros. movie ranks second globally among all 2023 films with regards to box office collections. However, success alone may not be enough; true respect and accolades continue to elude Minion-making animation studio at this point. Blamed often for making silly jokes and creating stories that appeal to the largest possible audience, Illumination now tries to escape from these accusations by telling moviethe story of a family of ducks – the Mallards who are headed by Kumail Nanjiani and Elizabeth Banks – wishing to leave their pond behind and explore new places.
Unlike other Illumination movies which feel more like company products due to the involvement of Ernest and Celestine co-director Benjamin Renner it promised something different. If Migration had just one goal then it can be regarded as having succeeded: The film has a focus on relationships that has been missing so much from Illumination since Despicable Me was released.
From the film’s first few moments, the Mallard family’s journey to Jamaica by wind is obvious, but Migration makes it clear that these ducks are interconnected making a boring plot interesting. Their beautiful but monotonous pond is left behind for their lust for adventure which relate to their motivations for wanting to go away from home just like in any other typical American family and Mack being the father of all. This character does not believe he can trust unknown places as well as people in them such as his children (Castellini).
When they find themselves in New York City- a metropolitan jungle- fighting for survival for the first time ever, it challenges everything they thought was true about life. It may be a tired reference point and another element of formulaicness in this movie, but at least one still cares about sweet little ducklings. Okay so we have got your standard issue family unit: gruff dad, loving mom, smart mouthed teenage boy with cute little sister –but watch these characters evolve beyond those clichés. Everything is personalized by Migration – this work has been done on an emotional level.
Furthermore, art quality signals how much Illumination has grown as a studio through years of filmmaking. Initially there is a mixture of hand-drawn images and computer generated elements that create not only stunningly depicted bedtime story but also act as opening scenes into the film proper. For the entire CG journey landscapes are captured with realism without sacrificing beauty in them; orange autumnal leaves darken cliffs while NY skyline gets painted hard with concrete coldness and humming with life at once. In particular water animation is impressive because of its ripples and reflections which look very realistic plus cloud effects have reached their zenith in one scene where soft mountainous gaseous masses are thrown into each other like snowballs.
These changes in tactics will not necessarily redefine Illumination as a whole, rather they would improve upon what people see as too typical in any Illumination film. It just feels like there’s a coat of overfamiliarity that covers all of Migration’s nice new things.
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