Film review: Forgotten Island
Posted by Piers, Maidstone Store on 3rd Nov 2026
Forgotten Island is a ravishing spectacle of a story that once fired up rarely lets go!
Filipino friends Jo and Raissa stumble across a forgotten world of Nakali only to sacrifice their precious 'best friends forever' memories in order to try and find their way back home.
Written and directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, who gave us the magical ride of the much loved Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, brings us Forgotten Island, a strikingly colourful deep dive into the mythology of the Philippines and the Filipino people. Jo and Raisa, two very different young girls who through a random meeting outside the principal's office became inseparable BFF's. All through their impressionable years through school they later embark on a daring journey in their teens to complete their long lasting friendship story before Raisa must leave Jo behind in the Philippines, to study at Caltech in Pasadena California.
Starring Liza Soberano (Lisa Frankenstien) as Raisa, a high achieving, high flying student who has the chance to study at Caltech University, and H,E.R. (Gabrielle Wilson - The Color Purple) as Jo, who is a highly charged missfit seeking to get the best from each day no matter the potential emotional cost with her BFF. Forgotten Island is a tale as old as time following the deep friendship of two girls each struggling in their own way to navigate through this thing called life. Seeking to find the adventure in everything at every turn, Jo pursues the last Silver portal key to take them to the lost world of Nakali - short for Nakalimutan, meaning 'forgotten' - where they can complete their coming of age emotional journey before they must part ways the very next day; unhappily dissolving their strong friendship at least for the short term.
Forgotten Island follows the familiar yet truly spectacular pastel colour palette of the wonderful Puss In Boots: The Last Wish. A feline hero's journey rekindling the old whilst also creating new friendships along the way. Forgotten Island is a heavily inspired Filipino adventure that is a huge nod to their people and their ways whilst creating a mystical yet moving tale for the rest of the world to be in awe of. Oddly enough, purple being the visually mind blowing graphical primary animation colour here (see Gabrielle Wilson's previous role), this film delivers us a visual treat that ceases to stand still for very long giving us a fun packed ride that rarely lets up once it's set off the leash, and if anything, speeds through the three acts with much fun and gusto. Also starring Dave Franco as Raww, a centuries old 'were-dog' and Jenny Slate (It Ends With US) as 'Batiba', a memory specialist who, herself being agoraphobic, prays on those outside her immediate dwelling to try and make her internal life fuller. Sound familiar in this internet age of an connected mass separation?
Packed with nods to the Philippines, and grounded in mythology bridging the gap between the East and the West so to speak; Forgotten Island is an extremely beautiful well thought out animated adventure that takes us on a journey which goes from steady and world building to brief anime style and back again as the film progresses. Following the adventures of Raisa and Jo, there is an odd similarity to a very different adventure called "The Hangover". A film illustrating the bond of friendship in sometimes certain uncertainties. The morning after the night before where hilarity prevailed but our memories have not yet caught up. This film takes us on a ride that whilst introducing many Filipino nods doesn't ignore the majority of the audience who aren't familiar with all their traditions.
With the Mannananggal, a ferocious and dreaded winged demon who can separate her upper winged torso from lower legged torso; it's used in this case as a double meaning with the also the physical and emotional separation of our two main heroines. Voiced by Lea Selonga (Disney's 1992 Aladdin), the demon is a mighty illustration of how emotionally dark Dreamworks Animation can go whilst seeking to entertain the whole family. It must be said though that this film is most definitely not for the very young due to its in places demonstratively dark story telling.
What helps elevate this film is the quality of the voice performances. All the aforementioned actors bring a power and dynamic that lifts this tale from being just another okay animation outing like The so so Bad Guys to something with far more power and pazazz. With the quality and belief in the vocal ranges especially Dave Franco's whose were-dog acting goes above and beyond, we are in for some highly professional vocal treats through the entire runtime. We are frequently treated to the Filipino language and where necessary, a phrase that is played upon during the adventure is 'Taya Na!' meaning a fast and friendly 'let's go!'
Forgotten Island works best in the captivating first viewing as we are thrown into the beautiful DreamWorks kaleidoscopic world of amazing colours and some very clever, fast moving graphics that add to rather than take away from the whole experience. The story of friendship, adventure and loss are dealt with using charm and candour as our heroine's journey sees the light at the end of the portal.