Forgotten Island reaches US cinemas with a friendship at stake

DreamWorks' Filipino-mythology adventure opens in US theatres September 25; its two friends must weigh a return home against memories of each other.

Forgotten Island reaches US cinemas on 25 September. DreamWorks Animation's official film page introduces Jo and Raissa, lifelong friends voiced by H.E.R. and Liza Soberano, as they prepare to leave school for different futures. A portal carries them to Nakali, an island of creatures drawn from stories they heard in

their Filipino families. Escaping may cost them the memories of their friendship. A fantasy built around a difficult choice Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, the writing and directing team behind Puss in Boots: The Last Wish , make that relationship the adventure's centre. DreamWorks names Dave Franco as Raww, a

hapless weredog who joins the friends, and Lea Salonga as the Dreaded Manananggal. The premise makes a practical difference to viewers expecting a straightforward creature quest: the danger is tied to what Jo and Raissa remember about each other, not only to finding a route home. Advance critics have differed on the

film's pace. Matt Goldberg at TheWrap admired its vivid animation and friendship story, while saying its abundance of ideas can be exhausting. Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian found the energy relentless and the characters short of room to breathe. Those are individual reviews, not Mythscribe's verdict. Universal

distributes the film; its official title page provides local showtime links. The 25 September date is the US opening. The Guardian lists an earlier Australian release and a 16 October UK opening, so readers elsewhere should check their own cinemas rather than assume a simultaneous worldwide launch. Headline image:

official Forgotten Island promotional illustration from DreamWorks Animation; © DreamWorks Animation / Universal Pictures.

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