4K Ultra HD Review: Migration (Collector’s Edition)

By John Corrado

The latest animated feature from Illumination (the studio behind the Despicable Me movies), Migration is the story of a family of ducks living on a peaceful lake who venture out into the world. And it’s honestly pretty cute.

Mack (Kumail Nanjiani) and Pam (Elizabeth Banks) are parents to ducklings Dax (Caspar Jennings) and Gwen (Tresi Gazal). Mack is obsessive about keeping them safe, telling scary stories about the dangers that lie beyond the quiet comforts of Moosehead Lake.

While Gwen is a little daddy’s girl who takes the stories to heart, Dax is at an age where he is becoming curious about seeing more of the outside world. A family of migrating ducks who stop by their lake while flying south for the winter gives them a taste of what else is out there.

Mack reluctantly decides to migrate with his family to Jamaica, but this is just the start of their big adventure, when they end up flying in the wrong direction instead. The story is very simplistic, made up of what almost feel like little vignettes, as the family interacts with a number of side characters on their migratory journey. But it’s also short and sweet, with some wonderful animation.

The animation is surprisingly lovely to look at throughout, from the soft, picture book style of the film’s early scenes, to the vibrant big city sequences. The film is directed by French cartoonist and animator Benjamin Renner, who previously gifted us the charming 2D features Ernest & Celestine and The Big Bad Fox & Other Tales, and is now making the jump to 3D animation. Some of Renner’s signature style is evident in the character designs, and the film does a fine job of balancing cartoony, slapstick humour with its softer moments.

The screenplay by Mike White (The White Lotus) features gentle character arcs, keeping the story focused on the family unit at its centre. Nanjiani and Banks put their own stamp on the anxious Mack and the lively Pam, and they are backed up by an appealing supporting cast. In particular, Danny DeVito is a hoot as the crusty Uncle Dan, who joins the mallard family on their journey, as is Keegan-Michael Key as the Jamaican bird Delroy. There’s also Carol Kane as a heron, and Awkwafina as a streetwise pigeon named Chump.

This is all geared mainly towards a younger audience, but there is something charming and wholesome about the film, which doesn’t try to have another agenda and simply works as a simple family story. If Illumination gets a lot of flack for this, Migration is also a fine example of what they can do well when crafting an original story not tied to existing franchises or IP.

The film really is a visual treat, and the 4K Ultra HD disc does justice to it. A flight through the clouds is particularly striking, as is a long take flying through the streets of New York. It’s all set to a sweeping musical score by John Powell that compliments the images. A fine choice for family viewing.

Film Rating: ★★★ (out of 4)

Bonus Features (4K Ultra HD):

The 4K disc also includes about an hour of bonus material, including three mini-movies (two of which are Despicable Me spinoffs featuring the Minions) and a variety of featurettes. A regular Blu-ray disc is also included in the package, which ships with a slipcover.

• Fly Hard (Mini-Movie) (4 minutes, 1 seconds): Pigeon Chump tries to return a lost locket in a snowstorm.

• Mooned (Mini-Movie) (8 minutes, 40 seconds): Finds Despicable Me supervillain Vector (Jason Segal) stuck on the moon with a Minion visitor.

• Midnight Mission (Mini-Movie) (4 minutes, 52 seconds): The Minions try to help little Agnes with her fear of the dark in this sci-fi-tinged short.

• Microphone Madness (3 minutes, 11 seconds): Candid footage of the actors goofing off in the booth.

• Meet the Cast (Play All – 15 minutes, 37 seconds): A nice look at each of the individual characters and the actors voicing them.

• Kumail Nanjiani: Mack (2 minutes, 7 seconds)

• Elizabeth Banks: Pam (1 minute, 48 seconds)

• Keegan-Michael Key: Delroy (2 minutes, 28 seconds)

• Awkwafina: Chump (2 minutes, 14 seconds)

• Danny DeVito: Uncle Dan (2 minutes, 10 seconds)

• Carol Kane: Erin (2 minutes, 4 seconds)

• Caspar Jennings: Dax & Tresi Gazal: Gwen (2 minutes, 46 seconds)

• Taking Flight: The Making Of (5 minutes, 29 seconds): Renner talks about his background in 2D and graphic novels, and translating this to 3D for the film.

• The Art of Flight (1 minute, 58 seconds): A progression reel of animating the birds in flight.

• The Sound of Flight (2 minutes, 57 seconds): Composer John Powell talks about his excellent score for the film.

• How to Draw (Play All – 10 minutes, 33 seconds): Renner teaches us how to draw four of the main characters.

• Mack (2 minutes, 47 seconds)

• Delroy (3 minutes, 8 seconds)

• Chump (2 minutes, 38 seconds)

• Gwen (1 minute, 58 seconds)

• Build Your Own Pop-Up Book (11 minutes, 7 seconds): A crafting tutorial on making your own pop-up book inspired by the film’s opening.

• Calling All Birds (Play All – 5 minutes, 34 seconds): A crafting tutorial on making devices for various bird calls.

• The Mack Quack (2 minutes, 39 seconds)

• The Heron Honk (1 minute, 30 seconds)

• The Chump Chirp (1 minute, 22 seconds)