Forgotten Island 3D Movie Review

September 28, 2026 by Jacob Scarberry in 3-D Cinema, 3-D Films, 3-D Movies, 3D or 2D, animated movies, Dreamworks, Forgotten Island, Forgotten Island 3D, Forgotten Island 3-D, Forgotten Island Review, Filipino Culture

Forgotten Island

3D Movie Review

Written By: Jacob Scarberry

3D

I could just say one word for the 3D: Brilliant.

Forgotten Island looks beautiful in 3D, with rich, saturated colors that really pop off the screen. The depth is fantastic. The pop-outs are constant. The art style, with its Japanese manga and anime-inspired look, feels like it was practically made for 3D. Every frame has so much detail and depth that you could pause almost anywhere in the movie and have a piece of 3D art worthy of being displayed in a museum.

From the very first frame, you are taken in by the beautiful worlds of 1990s Manila and Nakali. The 3D doesn't just add depth to the animation; it makes the entire art style come alive. Characters, environments, creatures, and even the smallest details feel like they exist in their own space. Some scenes have so much depth that you almost feel like you could reach into the screen.

Every time the characters travel through one of the gorgeous portals, the 3D becomes absolutely insane, with countless layers of depth, objects popping out from every direction, and such an immersive sense of space that you feel like you're traveling through the portal right alongside them. And every time it happens (few times), it will wow you.

The depth is both so natural with the wide-angle scenes, creating an image that is constantly impressive without feeling like the 3D is being forced on you. This is the kind of movie that makes you understand why 3D exists in the first place. It genuinely feels like Forgotten Island was made for the format.

No ghosting, no flatness, no warping of the image. Even the live-action inserts from the 1987 film the girls are watching are presented in 3D. It wasn't necessary, but it's awesome that they did it. It's stunning from beginning to end, and easily the best 3D of 2026 so far. I could keep going, but at this point, you get the idea. Insert positive adjective here.

Forgotten Island is a stunning showcase for 3D, a movie that feels like it was made for the format and absolutely must be seen in 3D in a theater.

Final 3D Score:

10/10 And Editor’s Choice Award

Movie

Never tear us apart.”

Filipino culture has largely been kept in the Philippines for the most part, with almost no films set there and almost no Hollywood films expounding on the awesome culture of the people. DreamWorks has come to rectify their mistake, and luckily, they hired the filmmakers responsible for Puss in Boots: The Last Wish to deliver this wonderful gift to the world at large.

The story of Forgotten Island focuses on two young girls and their friendship, which becomes the heart of the entire adventure. Since the days of elementary school, best friends Jo (Oscar-winning musician H.E.R.) and Raissa (Liza Soberano) have been inseparable, that is until Raissa announces that she is leaving the Philippines to attend CalTech in America. While spending their last night together on the beach, Jo comes across a magical sand dollar that transports the duo to the world of Nakali.

Having lost their memories of the past 12 hours of fun in Nakali, Jo and Raissa must search for clues with the help of Raww (Dave Franco), a shape-shifting weredog. Jo and Raissa must race the clock to restore their memories and deal with the mythical creatures of Tagalog lore, especially the dreaded Manang, a manananggal vampire that has the ability to separate their body from their torso. But more dreaded is the fear of losing their friendship and memories, and that is the main draw to the film.

The film is an animated, PG-rated take on The Hangover, with Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind and Thunderbolts thrown in for good measure, and it all works with great comedic takes on Filipino culture. The film isn't afraid to go to some dark places emotionally, unafraid of using slightly more adult language (I mean, it's slight, but for a modern family film, it almost feels like an NC-17 storyline) and visuals, and with the terrific performances from the main cast, along with support from the likes of Jenny Slate, Manny Jacinto, Lea Salonga, Ronny Chieng, and the rest, they help sell the mostly terrific script by directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado.

The beautiful and unique art style carried over from their previous film, Puss in Boots 2, is still amazing, with some '90s anime/video game flair for good measure that should be the rule, not the exception, for Hollywood animated films. There's almost nothing wrong with the film, but there are some plotlines here that could've been removed to make the film flow a bit better. But it would also make me miss out on more lore that is simply too intriguing to edit out of the film.

The film also falls into the same trap of turning the villain into a good guy/non-threat, which I wish wouldn't have happened so we could have had a slightly better climax. But that's my only real complaint, and even then, it's easily forgiven.

Overall, the film is a stunning feature of an oft-overlooked culture, despite Hollywood using the resources of the Philippines for decades, along with a great look at friendship and platonic love. While not able to reach the same highs as the directors' Puss in Boots 2 in terms of emotional depth and darkness for a Hollywood family film, Forgotten Island is still a fantastic fantasy for all ages to enjoy for decades to come.

Forgotten Island is a beautiful, emotional, hilarious, and visually stunning adventure that celebrates friendship, Filipino culture, and the magic of getting lost in a world that feels completely alive.

Final Movie Score: 8/10

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https://www.3dor2d.com/3d-or-2d-ratingssystem/

Official Website:

https://www.dreamworks.com/movies/forgotten-island

Minions And Monsters 3D Movie Review

July 04, 2026 by adolph vega in 3-D Cinema, 3-D Films, 3-D Movies, 3D or 2D, Minions and Monsters, Minions & Monsters, Minions and Monsters 3D, Minions and Monsters 3-D, animated movies, 2026, 3D films, 3d Movie, 3D Movies

Minions And Monsters

3D Movie Review

Written By: Jacob Scarberry

3D

If you’ve seen an Illumination animated film in 3D before, you’ll know they consistently produce some of the best 3D presentations around, and Minions & Monsters is no exception. It’s filled to the brim with stunning depth, natural dimensionality, and constant pop-outs, all without a single flat scene or noticeable flaw.

Even with all the mayhem and shenanigans the Minions are known for, the presentation never causes headaches or vertigo. The entire film is a showcase for great 3D, but if you’re looking for reference-quality material, I’d recommend the early steam train sequence. It offers an excellent preview of the visual spectacle that’s still to come.

Easily the best 3D presentation of the summer, Minions & Monsters is also one of the year’s best 3D experience’s.

Final 3D Score: 10/10, Editors Choice Award

Movie

For 16 years, I've watched every film in the Despicable Me series along with every film Illumination has done, and I can say that they peaked with the first Despicable Me in terms of film quality almost getting to DreamWorks/Disney levels of quality filmmaking, but very quickly falling victim to the lowest common denominator of Hollywood family films of storytelling and making sure merchandise is front and center everywhere in your life for a few months until the hype dies down and then rinse and repeat. I really figured that the series nadir was with the 2015 spin-off Minions would effectively kill off the Despicable Me films, but over $1 billion later, we have had a further 4 films in the franchise, with the latest being the subject of today, Minions & Monsters.

Which starts at a film museum where the tour guide (Voiced by Oscar-winner Allison Janney in a glorified cameo) who tells the story of how the Minions' became legendary movie stars while on their search for their new Big Boss. Three Minion outcasts: James, Henry and Ed (all voiced by director Pierre Coffin) become friends along the Minions' quest of servitude when James repeatedly focuses on his artistic side, much to the dismay of Minion leader, Dick (And acts like his name for much of the film). Their antics cause several of their bosses unceremonious ends due to the trio's lack of focus, which ultimately leads them in the Old West.

The Minions happen upon a horse chase between an outlaw and a group of cowboys chasing after the outlaw, having having believe they struck pay dirt, the Minions give chase, much to the dismay of the outlaw. It leads to a train, a plane, and half of Los Angeles destroyed, and a potential waste of film as the outlaw was an actor in a film, and the director, Max (Christolph Waltz) distraught at the ruined shot. Ordered to screen the footage to the studio heads, brothers Frank & Elwood Bright (both voiced by Jeff Bridges), the brothers love the yellow guys and force Max to hunt for them and make them stars of the silent age.

While their films make them become rich and famous, the advent of sound film ruins the minions careers, and most of the minions set off for servitude of a robot, Bort while the main trio set to make their own film, a monster movie, with the help of a spell book summoning Goomi (Trey Parker, yes that Trey Parker) who plans for world dominance in disguise of making a kaiju fight. More mayhem ensues to save the world and their film from destruction.

I was planning on just writing another review like the previous films I've reviewed of the series (Minions: The Rise of Gru and Despicable Me 4 for those keeping count at home) of it being just okay, made mainly for 5 year olds and their families and not meant for a thirtysomething without children, with the 3D being the best thing about the film and that'd be another Minion-based review done and over with until Despicable Me 5: The ConGruing of Villains in 2028 (not a real film... Yet). Color me surprised that this is easily the best Despicable Me film since the first one, and the best in the Minions subseries of films.

The film is a charming love letter to Hollywood, while extremely loose in actual factual events (though the film is set in 1927, you still have women protesting for women's suffrage well after it had been passed into law, sci-fi films being made despite sci-fi not exactly popular in the silent era, etc.) effortlessly throws in silent era nods to the big stars of the time like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton to name a few while also adding some actual nods to the time period (talkies, most editors being women at that time, etc.) that could lead a child's curiosity to learn more about the artistry and the history of the medium.

The film retains the typical Minions physical humor, which the kids of course laughed at and I chuckled quite a bit, but there were adults laughing at other jokes the kids didn't understand, and that surprised me that they actually made adult jokes. Not like double entredres, but actual jokes only adults will understand if they know about classic film or basic American history. The animation is fantastic as usual, with the film oozing with so much fun in each frame, it's amazing that it costs less than half of your typical Pixar/Disney/DreamWorks joint but manages to look as good as those films despite the lowered budget.

Voice acting is well-done by the cast of A-listers, professional voice actors and the director still capably performing as all the walking Twinkies with distinct differences in each character, but the highlight has to go to Trey Parker as Goomi. While distorted by computers, his vocal performance style manages to make it's way through the hi-tech filtering, giving us a fun performance as the main villain of the piece.

The technical aspects are also great, with a fun John Powell soundtrack, the sound being active and busy without being overwhelming, and the cinematography being lovely and colorful throughout, especially amongst the stylized sections focusing on the films being made.

My only real beef with the film is the filler subplot of Bort and his quest for world dominance being affected by a potential relationship with suffragette Debbie. While not useless or outright terrible, it's clearly filler for an already lean story length of 90 minutes and doesn't make much of an impression. There also wasn't much in the way of why Goomi wanted to take over the world, just a rather simple plot that's been told over and over again and I wish the film focused more on the filmmaking aspect more, but other than that, the film is a surprising hoot and a half.

I don't know if the human species really needed more than one Despicable Me film, let alone a massive 7 film franchise that largely allowed itself to be mediocre babysitting films for the younger Gen Z/Alpha kids of the past 15+ years, that's for history to figure out, but I have to give it to this entry in being quality entertainment. It's a breezy 90 minutes with some truly amusing bits and looks spectacular in 3D, and hopefully we get a physical 3D release in the near future as it truly deserves it, and it's great for the entire family and even childless adults who admire the art of filmmaking and film history. Maybe if this film is a hit, we'll finally get the inevitable Minions film set in 1940s Central Europe and then they can include world history events as told by the popular merchandise sold in stores.

Minions & Monsters is proof this franchise can still surprise me. It’s funny, charming, and far more thoughtful about filmmaking than I expected. I didn’t expect one of the year’s best surprises to come from a Minions movie, but I’m glad it did.

Final Movie Score: 8/10

Learn more about how we rate 3D content via the link below:

https://www.3dor2d.com/3d-or-2d-ratingssystem/

Official Website:

https://www.minionsmovie.com

The Wild Robot 3D Movie Review

September 28, 2024 by Jake Jarvis in 3-D Cinema, 3-D Films, 3-D Movies, 3D or 2D, The Wild Robot, Wild Robot, Dreamworks Wild Robot, animated movies, 2024, The Wild Robot movie

The Wild Robot

3D Movie Review

by: Jake Jarvis

3D

The Wild Robot, like most animated films, offers a solid 3D presentation. However, it lacks the depth it could have achieved, often feeling shallow compared to its potential. Some dark scenes caused the 3D images to become muddled, affecting the overall clarity. While there were a few brief pop-out moments, many opportunities were missed, especially during scenes of flight, snow, and fire. Overall, The Wild Robot provides a decent 3D experience, but it falls short of being truly immersive. It’s not compelling enough to be considered a ‘must-watch in 3D at the theater’ kind of experience.

Final 3D Verdict: 6/10

Movie

DreamWorks Animation’s The Wild Robot is a beautifully crafted, heartfelt adaptation of Peter Brown’s beloved children’s book series. Helmed by Chris Sanders, the film blends survival adventure, poignant themes of isolation, and the connection between technology and nature into an enchanting sci-fi narrative. With its stunning visuals and a standout voice cast, this film captures the essence of a story that’s both poignant and thrilling.

At the center of the narrative is Roz, a robot voiced by the extraordinary Lupita Nyong’o, who delivers a rich performance full of nuance and emotional depth. Shipwrecked on a remote island, Roz is initially a fish out of water, or more accurately, a machine out of its element. Her (Maybe it?) is a cold, mechanical nature is juxtaposed against the vivid, vibrant wilderness around her. As Roz gradually adapts to the environment and befriends the local animals, Roz’s journey from outsider to integral part of the island’s ecosystem is both touching and thought-provoking.

The relationship Roz develops with an orphaned gosling, whom she becomes a surrogate mother to, lies at the heart of the story. Their bond serves as an emotional anchor for the film, exploring themes of family, love, and the complexity of parental roles. Kit Connor as the voice of Brightbill, the gosling, delivers a sweet and endearing performance that provides a balance of innocence and curiosity. Their dynamic offers one of the film’s most touching aspects, deepening its emotional resonance.

The ensemble voice cast is nothing short of stellar. Pedro Pascal, as the world-weary Fink the fox, brings sarcastic wit, while Bill Nighy’s gravelly tone is perfectly suited to the role of a philosophical goose, Longneck. Catherine O'Hara and Matt Berry, both in minor yet memorable roles, as a put-upon opossum and beaver, inject humor and levity, ensuring that the film doesn’t drift too far into somber territory.

Visually, The Wild Robot is a feast for the eyes. DreamWorks’ animation team brings the island to life with meticulous cinematic attention to detail, from lush forests to tranquil seascapes. The contrast between the mechanical Roz and the organic landscape is visually striking, symbolizing the broader theme of coexistence between technology and nature. The animation style borrows some influences from classic Disney and Hayao Miyazaki, which enhances the immersion in this wild, untamed world.

Chris Sanders’s direction keeps the film engaging, balancing moments of quiet introspection with thrilling set pieces. There are moments of genuine peril—predator-prey dynamics play out naturally on the island, and Roz’s efforts to protect her adopted son, Brightbill feel intense and urgent. However, these moments are tempered with enough warmth and humor to maintain the film’s family-friendly atmosphere.

While the film occasionally slows down, particularly in the second act where the focus shifts more toward survival and less on character interaction, it never loses its sense of wonder. The film explores philosophical questions about artificial intelligence, nature, and the meaning of life, but it does so with a gentle touch that will resonate with audiences of all ages.

Overall, The Wild Robot is a moving, visually stunning film that takes viewers on a journey of self-discovery, compassion, and the unexpected ways in which life can flourish even in the most unlikely places. DreamWorks has crafted a modern animated classic that will likely be remembered for years to come, offering a poignant story about finding humanity in the most unexpected forms.

Final Movie Verdict: 8/10

Learn more about how we rate 3D content via the link below:

https://www.3dor2d.com/3d-or-2d-ratingssystem/

Official Website:

https://www.thewildrobotmovie.com