Migration (2023 film)

In New England, anxious Mack Mallard discourages his children Dax and Gwen from venturing beyond the pond, to the displeasure of his wife Pam. One day, the pond is visited by a flock of ducks who are migrating south to Jamaica, which the family finds interesting, but Mack has no such interest. An upset Pam tells Mack that he must open his eyes to the world before he misses the opportunity. That night, Mack talks with his uncle Dan, who also does not want to leave the pond, but his loneliness and persuasion makes Mack reevaluate his stance and he decides to let his family migrate, with Uncle Dan joining them at Gwen's behest. As they begin their journey, the Mallards discover that they are flying in the opposite direction. During a thunderstorm, they take shelter in a swamp underneath a boardwalk where they encounter elderly great blue heron Erin, who invites them to spend the night with her and her husband Harry in their shack. The family is afraid that Erin and Harry will have them for dinner. She says that back in the day Harry had a sharp eye and lightening reflexes for hunting. But now he is too old, and Erin brings the dinner back to the nest. Despite the herons' frightening countenance, Erin proves their good intentions by saving Dax and Gwen from a catfish that almost swallowed them. The next day after leaving the swamp, the Mallards arrive in New York City where Uncle Dan gets them in trouble with a flock of pigeons led by the pugnacious Chump. Pam defuses the situation and Chump introduces them to her friend Delroy, a scarlet macaw from Jamaica who is caged by a cruel human chef that kidnapped him. Despite Dax's plea to help get the key, Mack and Pam infiltrate the restaurant where the chef works to acquire the key to Delroy's cage and free him; he guides them to Jamaica in return. While Gwen stops for a bathroom break, the group finds an entrance to a resort inhabited by pekins. They enjoy the resort, until Dax discovers it is a duck farm, with the chef from earlier as its current client to purchase the pekins for food. Mack tells Dax to go back to Pam, but he instead alerts the pekins in order to help save them. He loses his wing feathers from being stepped on by the chef, rendering him flightless. The family, Delroy and the pekins escape the farm, and they later stop at a seaside motel to rest. Mack sternly scolds Dax for not listening to him and his reckless actions, worrying Pam and the others by his outburst and leaving Dax disappointed and upset. Later after the sun sets, the chef catches up and finds the birds via helicopter, capturing them except for Dax and Gwen who both manage to hide. Inside the helicopter, the chef plans to kill Mack and Pam first as revenge, putting them in a separate cage. Fearing the kids are lost, a despairing Pam begins regretting their migration until Mack regains her confidence, knowing she never gave up on anything, especially on him. Using a salsa dance they did back at the restaurant, and with Delroy and Uncle Dan's assistance, the caged Mack and Pam quietly sneak and try to reach a button to open the larger cage the others are trapped in, but the chef catches them in the act. A vengeful Delroy, aided by Uncle Dan and the pekins, pelt the chef with food until he is knocked unconscious, hitting the trapdoor button as he, along with Mack and Pam, fall out. The chef is caught in the cargo net, and Mack and Pam continue to fall while still in their cage until Dax and Gwen come to save them; Dax repaired his wings with some of Delroy's shedded feathers that fell off when the chef kidnapped the birds. Mack and Dax reconcile, while Delroy, Uncle Dan and the pekins escape by breaking the cage mechanism. Now led by Dax, the birds arrive in Jamaica, where Delroy reunites with his family and friends while the Mallards catch up with the duck family who visited their pond earlier. Mack thanks Pam for helping him open his eyes to the world, and the birds dance together in celebration during sunset. The following spring, the Mallards meet a group of Emperor penguins, whom they help bring back to the South Pole as the Mallards set off on another adventure. ==Voice cast==

• Kumail Nanjiani as Mack Mallard, the patriach of his family • Elizabeth Banks as Pam Mallard, the daring and quick-witted wife of Mack • Caspar Jennings as Dax Mallard, Mack and Pam's confident and restless older son • Tresi Gazal as Gwen Mallard, Mack and Pam's innocent younger daughter • Danny DeVito as Uncle Dan, Mack's curmudgeonly, adventure-averse uncle, Dax and Gwen's great-uncle • Keegan-Michael Key as Delroy, a homesick Jamaican-accented scarlet macaw locked away in a restaurant in New York • Awkwafina as Chump, the gritty leader of a New York pigeon gang • Carol Kane as Erin, a great blue heron whom the Mallards befriend on their journey • David Mitchell as GooGoo, the yogic leader of an American Pekin flock who join the Mallards and Delroy on their journey after escaping their farm • Isabela Merced as Kim, a duck whose family is heading to Jamaica An uncredited actor provides the vocal effects of the unnamed chef that Mack's family run afoul of and previously took Delroy away from Jamaica In the UK edition, musician Tom Fletcher and his wife, actress Giovanna Fletcher, cameo as the ducks Joe and Ellie. ==Production==

Development and writing in 2023 In February 2022, Illumination announced a new film titled Migration, with French animator and comic book creator Benjamin Renner set to direct and Mike White set to pen the script. In April 2023, more film crew such as co-director Guylo Homsy, editor Christian Gazal, and production designer Colin Stimpson were revealed. Renner previously directed the traditionally animated films Ernest & Celestine (2012) and The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales... (2017), and was already a household name among the staff of Illumination Studios Paris prior to his involvement with the company. Illumination head and film producer Chris Meledandri hired Renner to direct the studio's first original project since 2016 for his filmmaking sensibility, stating that during his visit to the Annecy International Animation Film Festival that there is a "filmmaker attention" for Migration in comparison with Illumination's recent releases up to The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023). Renner described Migration as Little Miss Sunshine (2006), but with ducks. When shaping the film's humor, Renner wanted to avoid "lazy jokes", which he felt were common in family films. Renner described the difference between traditional animation and computer animation as being that the former is additive while the latter is subtractive. Working with computer animation, the director found that there were many elements he felt did not belong, such as texture, lighting and shading. For the opening scene, Renner wanted to do something that was visually different from the rest of the film. He said that it is "a story before we get to the real story of the film." The scene is not actually traditional animation, but rather computer animation that looks traditional. Renner first did the scene using traditional animation, and then the team recreated it using computer animation, keeping as close to the reference as possible. For Migration, Renner explained that he took inspiration from naturally expressive animals in the wild in creating characters that have distinctly expressive features in their designs. Nature was the main inspiration for the color palette of the film; it contrasted with the more heightened color palettes of previous Illumination films. A trip Stimpson took to New York City helped in forming the location in the film. According to Stimpson, great care was taken in portraying Jamaica. The setting in which the Mallards arrive is inspired by the country's Blue Mountains. The visuals in the scene with the heron couple were inspired by The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920). That scene is followed by one with the Mallards flying through the clouds. Renner's view of the clouds during his plane trips to Illumination Studios Paris inspired the scene. ==Music==

On June 18, 2023, it was announced that John Powell would compose the film's music, marking his second collaboration with Illumination following The Lorax (2012). Renner wanted a score that had "a level of unusual creativity" and fun. The score uses a lot of string instruments and human vocals. Powell tried emulating 1960s music, in which there were a lot of vocals, and Renner responded positively. He also felt that he may have gotten the gig after expressing his admiration of Sergei Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf (1936) to the director. Mon Laferte performed a Spanglish cover of Destiny's Child's 2001 single "Survivor" for the film. ==Release==

Theatrical Migrations world premiere took place on October 19, 2023, as the grand summit matinee of the VIEW Conference expo in Turin, Italy. The film was theatrically released in the United States on December 22, It was accompanied in theaters by the Despicable Me short film, Mooned. The film was initially scheduled for release on June 30, 2023, On June 14, 2023, Illumination gave a special 25-minute preview of Migration at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, with Renner and Meledandri attending the event. Home media Migration was released on digital download on January 23, 2024, and on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD on February 27. It includes three short films—Fly Hard, Mooned, and Midnight Mission. The film was made available to stream on NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming service on April 19, 2024. As part of an 18-month deal with Netflix for Universal's animated films, the film streamed on Peacock for the first four months of the pay-TV window, before moving to Netflix for the next ten beginning on August 19. ==Reception==

Box office Migration grossed $127.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $172.9 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $300.5 million. In the United States and Canada, Migration was released alongside Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Anyone but You and The Iron Claw, and was projected to gross $10–15 million from 3,761 theaters in its four-day opening weekend. In its second weekend, the film made $17.2 million, finishing second. the film then made $10 million in its third weekend of release, finishing in fourth place. Critical response Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported 79% of filmgoers gave it a positive score, with 52% saying they would definitely recommend the film. Michael Ordoña of the Los Angeles Times felt that the plot was unambitious. However, they praised the film for differing from Illumination's previous filmography, particularly in the animation, humor, and voice performances. Lovia Gyarkye of The Hollywood Reporter praised the film's direction, humor, and emotional core and concluded that its "considerable appeal perhaps lies in the simplicity of its premise: The hardest part of embarking on any new journey is taking off." Writing for the San Francisco Chronicle, Zaki Hassan compared Migration favorably to Illumination's other 2023 film, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, saying, "While that film found success thanks to multigenerational nostalgia, this one soars higher by creating an original world and making the audience feel invested in the characters' journeys." Aparita Bhandari of The Globe and Mail felt that the film retained a balance between appealing to younger and older audiences and directed particular praise to Tresi Gazal's voice performance. Soren Andersen of The Seattle Times gave the film a 2 out of 4 star rating and, in contrast, felt the film lacked appeal for older audiences, criticizing its lack of subtlety in its themes. Jake Coyle of the Associated Press commended the animation for its "warm cartoon tones" and "lush sense of color", but felt that the story was unoriginal, writing that "it never quite spreads its wings." Kristen Page-Kirby of The Washington Post also directed praise at the animation, but felt the story lacked memorability and concluded, "Migration will be remembered as neither great nor terrible. It will simply fade into the cinematic ether like so many ducks in the wind." Ryan Gaur of IGN gave the film a 5 out of 10 and felt that Migration was a step above Illumination's previous filmography with its animation and character dynamics, but was weighed down by a "tedious" plot and the occasional "typical brand of Illumination humor". Accolades ==References==