Mia and the Migoo

I'm really surprised that this only has three stars from Common Sense, and not many reviews from parents or kids. I rented it because it contains the type of characters and storyline my daughter enjoys, because she liked the trailer, and because I tend to like most of what G Kids distributes. It exceeded our expectations with its high quality, and with unexpected treats including Wallace Shawn as the Migoo, gruff-at-first construction workers displaying solidarity, altruism, and perseverence, and Mia's friend, sweet Aldrin. Do some reviewers not like the fact that kids' movies are sometimes about magic? Really? Half of kids' movies are about magic. Pumpkins don't really turn into carriages, and kisses do not wake people from a poison coma. I will say that the Whoopi Goldberg witch character may not appeal to the youngest children, but its okay that not all movies are for toddlers. Older kids need movies, too.

This movie is gorgeous, has a generally nice story and a strong role model. Unfortunately, this movie as far as characters are concerned is like Pocahontas with slightly more effort. Mia's a great role model for young girls. She faces all kinds of odds and makes friends with everyone through her kindness and bravery. Unfortunately, that's all there is too her. She's not interesting. She undergoes no character arc, no major changes, she's just herself and that's it. The Migoo suffer from the same problem as Aishling from Secret of Kells: They're very entertaining and could be the best characters in the film but only get about 10-15 minutes worth of screentime. However, while Aishling was well fleshed-out, these guys aren't. The film tries to make them interesting but gives them way too much story and way too little time to work with it. However, what makes this film better than Pocahontas is the father and the son. They are so interesting and it's even better that the film puts most of its focus on them as they were the only people I cared about completely in this movie. There is so much depth to them, they're so relate-able, their relationship is handled so well that I don't understand why they're not the title characters. Clearly this movie is more about them than the little girl and her forest spirit friends! All in all, it's a good film and I do recommend checking it out, just don't set your expectations too high when it comes to the story. This is more worth checking out for its visuals.