Origin and release year: United States • Spain (2024 – Animal Adventures: Save The Forest)

Starring: Terrance Stewart, Monica Klein, Christopher Walker, John Lewis

Director: Daniel Hernández Torrado

Synopsis: Softie and his forest friends embark on a journey to save their home from a garbage invasion, discovering the value of friendship along the way. (Tubi) 

This animated film tells the heartwarming tale of a rabbit named Softie, and his friends, fighting against their home being invaded by garbage. The story focuses on the ever-present literal fight for environmental conservation but simultaneously tells a sweet story of friendship. It’s the perfect movie to watch together as a family or even if you’re an animation enthusiast who’s a sucker for a wholesome message. This film is not just cute at face value (don’t get us wrong – it also just so happens to be adorable) but it is also aimed at inspiring others with its profound but fun message and raising awareness among global audiences of all ages. 

The story doesn’t just focus on teaching environmental awareness and valuable lessons about friendship, but it also shares a lot of informative facts about nature and animals. For instance, children who are learning about nature can learn interesting facts about the characters translating to their real-life animals, like Softie the rabbit being fast or Foxy the fox having a great sense of smell.

Whilst the story feels information-heavy at times, as there is a lot of spoken dialogue as opposed to visual storytelling – it still does a great job of getting its message across. 

In terms of technical aspects, whilst the light composition in the animation could’ve used some attention, the film pays great attention to detail. Not only is the animation really well done and incredibly smooth, but the textures in the graphics have gone into fine detail down to the nitty gritty aspects. This also translates well when considering the sound design (such as the crunch of the leaves as they walk through the foliage) as it really puts us into the beautiful forest landscape and gives us that extra connection to the story environment. This adds an extra layer of wanting to root for the characters in their fight to protect their home. 

The voice actors did a sterling job of creating an immersive viewing experience, too. The innocence of the animals as they couldn’t fathom their environment being tampered with or polluted was well-portrayed. The script was well-written, especially in the question-asking that gave the impression that the animals had to comprehend the environmental disturbance. In the same breath, the questions seemed to not just be for the characters among themselves, but also for us viewers. With these lingering questions about the environment and pollution, the film makes you think about the impact of your global footprint on unsuspecting animals, as well.  

An element of irony also comes into play later on in the film as the animals crossover from the forest into the suburbs and city (i.e. the human world) to try to get to the root of things. There is irony in the animals seeking food in the garbage that they so deeply dislike, and also in the line between domestic/city animals and wild animals as they utilize each other’s strengths and weaknesses to get to the bottom of things. It was also interesting to listen to the animals’ curiosities about the human world as they reflect many human curiosities that we have about the animal world in real life, too. Naturally, we also deal with the subject of robots vs. nature, as the animals encounter one on their journey. 

This part of the story really gets you thinking about how industrialization has come to impact the Earth and humans’ roles in the planet’s demise. You feel this especially when the robot’s uncaring demeanor deems the fact that the animals are losing their home as ‘irrelevant’ information. In the world of business, efficiency is prioritized without giving a second thought to the environmental implications of those decisions, especially in the line of factory work. That’s just the way it is.

There was some humor written into the script that was like hidden gems of giggles. These moments really helped in terms of comic relief as Animal Adventures: Save the Forest deals with relatively heavy subject matter.

The film also showed emotional depth as we got to experience Softie’s sadness and despair once he was separated from his friends and isolated in the dark concrete dystopic city. We also get to see his and his friends’ character arcs as they break free. Once they manage to override the robot protecting the protocol by explaining that environmental concern is not only for animals but for humans, too. The day is saved! 

This is the climax of the film where the moral of the story comes in, as well. Not only do we have a happy ending, but we have a potent reminder. The preaching of environmental friendliness is essential to keep us in touch with our earth-destroying habits which will in turn harm us, as humans, as well. 

If there was ever a better film to get this message across, then it most certainly is Animal Adventures: Save the Forest. Whether you are an adult watching this film or a child who is learning and encountering these messages for the first time – there is a universal takeaway for anyone who watches Animal Adventures: Save the Forest.

This is especially vital for children as we all know the struggle of finding an animated film that is actually age-appropriate and at least somewhat educational. Watching this film will fill the void many have felt at the lack of wholesome and enriching family content these days.

Animal Adventures: Save the Forest is available on Amazon Prime Video and Tubi. Make sure to check it out on either platform! 

What did you think of Animal Adventures: Save the Forest? Let us know in the comments.