Mia and the Migoo

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Mia and the Migoo (original title Mia et le Migou) is 2008' France/Italy animated movie. Winning EFA award for best animated feature film in 2009.

It's about a tan-skinned, long-haired (but not for long) girl named Mia and her quest to find her father Pedro, a laborer who has been trapped in a landslide at a disaster-plagued construction site on a remote tropical lake. Mia, seems to feel his plight and embarks on an adventure to save him. Meanwhile, the brash hotel promoter is alarmed by the discovery of a huge footprint and other incidents on the site. At the same time, the man behind the construction, Jekhide (slicked-back black hair, fancy white suit and a devil’s grin) journeys with his financial backers to sell the project. And he was forced too take his son Aldrin with him. The story is not complicated and revolves around a very classical theme man vs nature.

But my God it looks beautiful. Where movie stands out it its animation style. It uses bright strong watercolours and pastels. In a way, some of the scenes in this film are more beautiful than in Miyazaki’s because of this artistic choice. Much effort was put into making Mia and the Migoo into a visually appealing experience. On top of the pastel/watercolour work, all vehicles and technology appear to have been animated with CG, making them look sharper and slightly out of place in nature (which they are).

Not to be confused with Mia and the Mi-Go. Or Mia and Magoo.

Tropes used in Mia and the Migoo include:

• Green Aesop: Recklessly destroying nature for the sake of profit will have disastrous effects on not just the local environment, but the planet as a whole.
• Happy Rain: Seen in the end, where the raging storm eases into a much gentler drizzle once a new Tree of Life starts growing.
• Happy Ending: A very happy ending for all involved: The Migoo is bought back to life, the rainforest is saved, Mia and her love interest grow closer to their fathers, and even the Big Bad has seen the error of his ways and turns over a new leaf.
• Heel Face Turn: As much as a scumbag as he is, Jekhide comes to realize how awful he's been to his son and the world around him, and works to make amends to his son once the storm is stopped.
• Rousseau Was Right: While not subtle at all about its Green Aesop, this film has a very optimistic view of humanity and its relationship with nature. Even Corrupt Corporate Executive Jekhide has a spark of goodness inside him, and it motivates him to pull a Heel Face Turn when he realizes that his attack on the Tree of Life nearly led to the destruction of the world.
• Scenery Porn: The film's watercolor artstyle is beautiful as a whole, but the lush, gorgeous rainforest deserves a truly special mention.