#pearlstudios

Dreamwork’s Abominable premiered Saturday at TIFF. On the surface, it’s about a 15-year-old girl Yi, (Chloe Bennet) journeying to bring home a yeti she deems Everest, to his home on… Mount Everest. Just below the surface, it’s about family values, loss of a loved one, taking time out for fun, not all families being blood, and maybe a few other standard kid-friendly values snuck in there. This is all demonstrated using a modern Chinese family in China, which gives it a unique taste compared to other American children’s films using this fairly traditional recipe.

Yi lives with her mother (Michelle Wong) and her grandmother referred to as Nai Nai (Tsai Chin). Nai Nai is a welcome character in the beginning; she’s adorably funny and may likely to remind you of elder family member in your own life. Yi is shown keeping herself busy taking jobs of all kinds to save up money, therefore missing out on family time. One day she finds a yeti on her roof, and realizes she needs to get him back home.

Yi goes on this journey with her childhood friend Jin (Tenzing Norgay Trainor) and his little cousin Peng (Albert Tsai). It turns out to be a split-second decision on even Yi’s part when she hops on a boat with Everest with no turning back (which explains why she happens to have a violin on an expedition up a mountain, something I was curious about from the trailers). Peng too makes the jump, forcing Jin to come against his better interests to protect him. Jin spends a portion of the movie trying to get himself and Peng home, until ultimately deciding to stay with Yi until Everest gets home.

The kids’ personalities, along with their perfect casting, make them fun to watch. Bennet has a range of sass that goes well with Yi’s determined nature. In a turn of events to other movies that feature ditzy boy-obsessed teen girls, we have a similar seeming male! Jin definitely has no interest in an adventure through the wilderness, made clear by his affection to his phone and the many ladies in his life. Along with this character having enough flaws make a teaching moment by the end of the movie, he’s was hilarious. Trainor knew where to hit every crack of the voice and inflection with this character. This is similar to Tsai’s Peng, the casting was on point to make you believe this dorky kid is actually playing with a yeti on the screen in front of you.

Which brings me to (and how have we gotten so far without mentioning him?) Everest! He’s everything you could want. Fluffy, adorable, playful, and… magic! Wait, magic? Yep, they’re going with magic. Ok, it might seem gimmicky at first -audiences can believe yetis might be living on a remote mountain, but suspension of disbelief has to go a bit further when massive growing blueberries and surfing on flowers becomes involved- BUT, it works. They’ve tied Everest’s powers to a musical humming noise he makes, and Yi has a special bond to her violin that has to do with her late father. It comes together well in a touching moment before the climax. Plus, it’s fun to watch Everest do his thing and the animation quality behind the magical sequences.

The animation within the entire movie is absolutely gorgeous. The backdrop of the journey going throughout China is pretty fun as well as beautiful, considering they are all real locations. You can appreciate Everest as the animated spectacle he is due to the personality and movements that bring him to life by talented animators; it’s an absolute joy to watch.

The villains of the movie are a collector of rare animals (one of which actually steals the show as he continues to pop up throughout the film) played by Eddie Izard, and the scientist helping him to find the yeti, played by Sarah Paulson. Not to mention her rare gerbil often seen seated on her shoulder, Duchess. This is an interesting enough crew to be tailing the kids and Everest, I actually found myself enjoying Izzard’s character more and more as the film went on, but at times the stakes felt low. After all, Everest has magical powers that only get stronger the closer he gets to home.

Overall, Abominable is still adorable and sincere. It makes you warm and fuzzy while still tugging at heart strings. It may not stray from the path from a formula that works, but the characters draw you in and keep you there with outstanding performances, animation, and comedy. I especially heard kids in the audience laugh when Peng and Everest would goof off, and many times Jin is onscreen being overdramatic about something or another. It’s a fun film that will make your kids laugh without cringey puns, and will leave you wishing you had your own Everest.

For Chloe fans, it’s great to see her fall into this role. I feel she’s able to dig into it much more than her voice role on Marvel Rising. You’ll have a great time watching Everest and Yi become friends and go on this adventure together.