Migration (2023)

Overprotective dad, restless kids, wrong turn, big lesson, beach. Migration’s plot fits on a sticky note, and you’ll call most of it early. Kumail Nanjiani voices Mack Mallard, a duck so worried about the world that his family has never left their pond in New England, until his wife Pam and grumpy Uncle Dan finally get him airborne and headed for Jamaica. They promptly fly the wrong way. What lifts it is how lovely it looks, all warm light and rich color, and how gentle it feels next to Illumination’s usual bouncing-off-the-walls comedy. The stops along the way are the fun part: a scary-looking heron couple in a swamp who turn out to be sweet, a pigeon gang in New York run by a boss named Chump, and a homesick macaw named Delroy stuck in a restaurant cage. Tresi Gazal’s little Gwen is a delight. It made $300 million worldwide on a reported $72M. A 6.6 because it’s simple, pretty and kind. $146.93 says somebody in your house demands a family trip to Jamaica before the credits finish.

What works: The warm, painterly animation is lovely, and the heron swamp and the New York pigeon stretch are the most inventive bits.

What doesn’t: The story is predictable from start to finish, and the overprotective-dad lesson gets spelled out more times than it needs to.

Who it’s for: Families with young kids who want a short, sweet movie that won’t make the grown-ups wince.