"Forgotten Island' premieres to rave reviews, audience joy and so-so box office

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Producers and cast members pose for selfies at the US premiere of 'Forgotten Island.'

When the newly minted Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opened its doors for its historic first-ever film screening on September 23, it didn't choose a standard Hollywood blockbuster. Instead, it handed the keys to Forgotten Island —and two days later, DreamWorks Animation's latest feature is setting both the internet and nationwide theaters on fire. 

Boasting a staggering 98% to 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 72 on Metacritic, directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado haven't just made a hit; they’ve created a cultural milestone.

From the glitzy museum premiere to standard Friday matinees, the verdicts are rolling in from critics and audiences alike. Here is how the world is reacting to this vibrant explosion of Filipino culture.

The Critics: Visually stunning and pure chaos 

Mainstream critics are universally dazzled by the film's kinetic, anime-inspired aesthetic and its deeply respectful integration of Philippine mythology. For many Western reviewers, it is being hailed as an absolute triumph of original storytelling.

"A gorgeous, hyper-stylized adventure that effortlessly marries emotional depth with jaw-dropping folklore," writes Variety. "It’s the most visually inventive film DreamWorks has delivered in years."

Even the rare pushback feels like a compliment to the movie's relentless energy, with critics noting its frantic, Hangover-style quest structure.

The Guardian was slightly more fatigued by the pace, calling it a "frantic, over-energized experience that rarely slows down to breathe." However, Mashable completely disagreed, enthusiastically crowning it as "a chaotic joyride and an epic adventure for weirdos."

Set against a nostalgic 1990s backdrop, the film focuses on two Filipino BFFs: Jo (voiced by Grammy winner H.E.R.) and Raissa (voiced by Liza Soberano), two lifelong best friends standing at the precipice of adulthood. 

On the final night after their high school graduation, just before their lives pull them down separate paths, they unexpectedly stumble through a magical portal. They are transported to Nakali, a fantastical island straight out of Philippine mythology. To find their way home, the two must navigate a breathtaking landscape populated by legendary folkloric creatures, forcing them to confront the evolution and survival of their friendship. 

The Gateway: How it plays with Non-Filipino audiences

One of the film's biggest triumphs is how it is received outside of the diaspora. Non-Filipino viewers and critics aren't just tolerating the dense Filipino lore; they are entirely enchanted by it. Reviews note that while the movie introduces creatures like the duwende (goblins) and tikbalang (were-horses), it never feels like a lecture.

"The rich mythology of the Philippines provides a fertile soil that will stun the uninitiated," notes The Mercury News.

RogerEbert.com pointed out the organic writing, stating that while general audiences "will likely learn a lot about Mercado's culture," the film's core themes remain universally human. "The threat of the mystical island—losing the memories of the person you love most—is a deeply moving metaphor for the fear of growing apart."

Box office and word-of-mouth potential

Forgotten Island is currently projected to open with a modest $14 million to $18 million domestically. While the film is a massive hit with critics, it is facing a highly competitive weekend and a slow box office start that underperforms early tracking expectations.

The early box office data and tracking dynamics highlight several factors shaping its theatrical run:

• Strong Previews: The film grossed $1.48 million in domestic previews across Thursday showtimes, Mystery Monday, and Sunday sneak peeks. This is a strong start for an original film, pacing slightly ahead of DreamWorks' 2022 hit The Bad Guys ($1.1 million previews). With an almost 100% on Rotten Apples, the feature is the Dreamworks' highest rated animated film of all time.

• Tough Weekend Competition: The movie is not expected to claim the #1 spot this weekend. It is battling major crowded theatrical traffic, including the highly anticipated re-release Avengers: Endgame Encore and the horror debut of Resident Evil, placing it on track for a 4th or 5th place finish.

• Long-Term "Legs" Potential: Carrying an $80 million production budget, the movie will rely heavily on sustained long-term performance. Because it faces zero major family film competition until The Cat in the Hat debuts in early November, box office analysts predict its near-perfect critical reviews will drive strong word-of-mouth over the coming weeks.

View from the edge: A historic celebration of representation

For Filipino and Filipino American theatergoers, Forgotten Island is less of a standard movie release and more of a historic victory lap. Audiences are flooding social media with praise for seeing specific cultural nuances and monsters like the manananggal proudly centered in a massive Hollywood production.

The star-studded cast—featuring voice performances from H.E.R., Liza Soberano, Lea Salonga, Dave Franco, Jo Koy and Manny Jacinto — has only amplified the AAPI community's excitement.

At the premiere, star Jacinto captured the emotional weight of the moment: "Seeing this wave of support from the community is just huge. These opportunities are so rare, and to see our stories told on this scale is everything."

An early audience member posting on X (formerly Twitter) echoed the sentiment: "I took my parents to see it today and we were all crying by the end. Seeing a manananggal on a theater screen while Dave Franco plays a chaotic creature named Raww is the exact chaotic energy my inner child needed."

It is hoped that the feature will catch on like last year's big hit,  K-pop Demon Hunters animated movie, which captured a wide ranging audience beyond the Asian American community.

Ultimately, Forgotten Island is proving that the most specific stories are often the most universal. Unfortunately, in too  many eyes, "universal" means white, male and born in the US. 

We are betting that "universal" means more than that narrow perspective. RogerEbert.com's review gets it. Forgotten Island  captures the heart of "Forgotten Island" goes beyond race or nationality: "... friendships, even very close ones, have a lifespan, and that even though changes in circumstance or geography might not completely end the friendship, it will alter it and make it less central to daily life — and that’s not only a bearable disappointment; it’s a natural part of growing up that almost everyone has had to deal with."

By grounding a wildly imaginative mythical world in a deeply relatable story about two lifelong best friends facing the reality of growing up, DreamWorks has delivered a masterpiece that belongs to everyone who has ever had a friend.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

A grim September reminds us the assaults on Asian Americans have not stopped

From a brutal, fatal beating in Virginia to a horrific, grisly beheading in Texas, a stabbing at a Wyoming rest stop, and a Texas politician’s xenophobic dog-whistles, the message being sent to our communities is clear, loud, and dangerous: You don't belong here.

September has been a devastating month for the Asian American and South Asian American communities, proving yet again that the toxic mix of political scapegoating and street-level racist violence continues to put a target on the backs of all Asian Americans.

Beaten to death

In Norfolk, Virginia, our elders are once again paying the ultimate price for simply existing in public spaces. Bert Atienza, a 77-year-old Filipino-American, died from blunt head trauma following an altercation inside a local Walmart. 

The spark was agonizingly mundane: Atienza reportedly spoke up when a teenage employee nearly struck his wife with a heavy shopping cart. Rather than defusing the situation, the teenager called her parents to the store. Travis White and Erika Mitchell arrived, cornered the elderly man, and brutally beat him. 

Both parents have now been charged with second-degree murder. It is a reminder of how quickly routine interactions can turn deadly for Asian American elders when bias takes over.

South Asians most targeted

The casual brutality facing our community members reached an unthinkable horror in Dallas, Texas. Chandra Mouli "Bob" Nagamallaiah, a 50-year-old Indian motel manager, was brutally murdered and beheaded by a co-worker. 

The senseless violence erupted from a minor dispute when Nagamallaiah instructed the employee not to use a broken washing machine. When Nagamallaiah asked another worker to translate the instruction due to a language barrier, the suspect—identified as Yordanis Cobos-Martinez—flew into a rage, retrieved a machete, and launched a merciless attack. 

Nagamallaiah’s wife and son rushed from the front office in a desperate attempt to save him, only to watch helplessly as the horrific violence unfolded. It is a devastating illustration of the vulnerable, frontline realities immigrants face while trying to earn an honest living.

The danger extends far beyond retail aisles and hits our highways. On September 13, a 28-year-old Sikh truck driver, identified only as Singh, survived a horrific, unprovoked attack at an Interstate 80 rest area in Sweetwater County, Wyoming. 

Singh was followed into a restroom and stabbed 17 times. A nearby family rushed to his aid, applying life-saving first aid until emergency responders arrived, 

while suspect Andrew Kris Bzdak was arrested and charged with attempted first-degree murder. 

Community advocates point out that this didn't happen in a vacuum, following a wave of online hostility targeting South Asian truck drivers—including a since-deleted Department of Homeland Security graphic featuring a Sikh driver with the text "Get off our roads." 

Civil rights groups are demanding a federal hate crime investigation into how official messaging reinforces such violence.

Unapologetic racism in Texas

The violence on the streets is fueled directly by the rhetoric coming from those seeking power. In mid-September, Bo French, a Republican nominee for the Texas Railroad Commission, sparked massive outrage after posting a photo on X showing South Asian students celebrating a University of Texas at Austin football victory. 

French captioned the post claiming "Americans have been displaced by foreigners." The reality, of course, is that the students targeted are actual American citizens, many born and raised right here. 

In a rare display of bipartisan unity, the comments drew sharp condemnation not just from Democrats, but from top Texas Republicans—including Senator John Cornyn and Governor Greg Abbott—proving that French's overt xenophobia crossed a line even for his own party.

View from the edge

This alarming surge in hate incidents against the AAPI community did not emerge in a vacuum; it traces its roots directly back to the scapegoating of the pandemic era, when bigoted rhetoric from Donald Trump and top administration officials deliberately linked Asian bodies to a global health crisis. 

By popularizing terms like "Chinese virus" and "Kung flu," highest-level political figures gave mainstream permission for xenophobia to fester, turning public health anxieties into open season on Asian Americans. The rhetoric that once weaponized a pandemic has since metastasized into a permanent political tool, laying the groundwork for the modern dog-whistles and street violence we see today.

Whether it’s political rhetoric that treats Asian Americans as perpetual foreigners or unprovoked violence on our streets and highways, the assault on our community is ongoing. 

We can no longer afford to treat these hateful acts as isolated incidents or chalk them up to bad days. Silence is no longer an option, and waiting for institutions to protect us out of the goodness of their hearts is a fatal mistake. 

Though the attacks against us no longer make the front pages, it is not any less disappointing that many people still don't see us as fellow Americans and instead use as scapegoats for political purposes.

Until we actively dismantle the pipeline connecting political hate speech to street-level brutality, our elders, our workers, and our youth will continue to walk with targets on their backs. The time for polite outrage has passed; our survival demands collective, uncompromising resistance.

What's even more frightening: there are still a few days left in September.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.