Mia and the Migoo

Painstakingly and imaginatively animated, Mia and the Migoo almost gets by on ingenuity alone. The film reportedly features a half-million hand-painted frames, and director Jacques-Rémy Girerd deserves a lot of credit for having the patience to give the film its signature look. The story, though, is likely not to resonate with American audiences, especially young ones. Like the venerated Miyazaki often does, Girerd sneaks a strong undertone of societal critique into his story. Mia has a premonition that her father, who is working on a controversial construction project in the South American rainforests, is in danger. She’s right: He’s been trapped in a cave-in. On her journey to save her father, she encounters the Migoo, dimwitted giants who protect some kind of tree of life, which is being threatened by the evil land developer. And there’s a knife-wielding witch. Have fun, kids