ANI-MOVIES, *Ainbo: Spirit Of The Amazon

Ainbo: Spirit Of The Amazon succeeds in delivering a better message of ecology than Ferngully ever did. This was a shared production between studios in Peru, Germany, and the Netherlands that came out in 2021. The fully-CGI film had an English release in American theaters and was eventually put out on home video format and streaming. It got praised for its depiction of Peruvian mythology and culture, as well as how deforestation is still having a huge impact on the environment.

Set in the nation known as Candamo within in the Amazon jungle, newly teenaged native Ainbo wants to be the best warrior in her tribe. She grew up not knowing what happened to her parents, so she was raised by Chuni who also looked after the chief's daughter Zumi who is also Ainbo's best friend. It's unclear if the two girls have a relationship beyond having grown up together, but it's largely hinted that they have a sapphic relationship. The tribe is under a curse where the people are sick and the rivers are polluted killing off all the fish, so Ainbo wants to see about helping Zumi with this crisis since she just becomes the new chief. Ainbo is visited by a comical pair of spirit animals, the tapir Vaca and the armadillo Dillo who can talk and lead her to the giant tortoise Motelo Mama who watches over the whole Amazon. She sends them to retrieve a piece of moonstone from a tremendous sloth to access the cure for curse from a tree that Ainbo sees as her mother's spirit. Meanwhile, a white man and his workers are ravaging the rain forest looking for gold and pretends to be a shaman helping cure Zumi's father, but he is in reality Ainbo's father Will who is possessed by the evil snake deity Yacuruna. Ainbo's mother Lizeni helps lift the curse and frees Will from Yacuruna after an intense fight with a giant mechanical scorpion made of construction vehicles. Will and Lizeni then pass on with Ainbo helping Zumi in her new responsibilities as chief.

Ainbo: Spirit Of The Amazon is a pleasurable film that doesn't try shoving the theme of conservation down your throat while still telling a somewhat compelling story. Ainbo herself is a great heroine who even though she is a strong female character still realizes her own immaturity as not being experienced enough to handle most of the journey solely on her own, plus her spirit guides don't just bail her out of every situation while doubling as trickster spirits. The dub is acceptable despite the fact that some of the dialogue doesn't totally match up with what is going on in the story. The film didn't make its money back in production value, but it has gained a modicum of notoriety since its theatrical release on streaming. The animation is not up to Pixar's standards, although it fits the colorful look the view gives of the lush Amazon jungle.