Birdboy: The Forgotten Children

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Birdboy: The Forgotten Children

Released Dec 15, 2017

1h 16m

Fantasy

Adventure

Animation

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

33 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

Animal friends hatch a dangerous plan to escape from a post-apocalyptic island, and an outcast called Birdboy unleashes a secret power that could change the world forever.

Critics Consensus

Birdboy's nihilistic coming-of-age narrative captures innocence lost through surreal, striking animation and caustically optimistic storytelling.

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Richard Whittaker

Austin Chronicle

Enthralling and effortlessly relevant, Birdboy is a searing contemporary fantasy, and often unrelenting in its savage attacks on greed, acquisitiveness, the disposable society, and some not-so-subtle jabs at Spanish Catholicism.

Rated: 3.5/5

May 24, 2018

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

The drawing style bears no resemblance to Japanese anime, yet the narrative tone is remarkably similar, with cute and sinister elements held in suspension by a deadpan cool.

Jan 13, 2018

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Matthew Lickona

San Diego Reader

An animated movie about troubled teens, and quite possibly for them as well, because it's so very like them: alternately sweet and scary, tender and violent, dense and scattered, and oh yes, childlike and adult.

Rated: 3/5

Jan 12, 2018

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Carla Monfort

Espinof

A true Spanish animation gem, full of fascinating and disturbing imagery with a devastating story that warns us against the future we are building for new generations. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 4/5

Nov 2, 2022

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Jon Hogan

Hyperallergic

With Birdboy, the techniques and tools of cinema allow Vázquez to realize the strongest possible version of a story adapted many times.

Feb 10, 2020

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Mattie Lucas

From the Front Row

A film that's easier to respect than to like, filled with dazzling artwork but saddled with a scattered story that doesn't always connect on an emotional level.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 4, 2019

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martin f

A very bleak movie with a beautiful art direction. I really loved this feeling of watching hand drawn animation with watercolors. The story is divided between Birdboy moving around and a group of friends trying to leave their miserable life. The friends' parts are by far the best with this three teenagers trying their best to fight against their life. The Birdboy's parts are not really interesting the character himself is not engaging and doesn't seem to have a story for himself (he would have been better as a secondary characters in the friend's story) Even if in the last minutes show some optimism for a better future, the moral of the story still sounds pretty pessimistic. There is some humor in there, but sometimes is a little too stupid (a talking inflatable duck, and a dog with big balls) and doesn't fit with the movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

this movie is one of this underrated masterpices. Of course not everyone will love it, but people that care about our planet will probably find it interesting and good. the movie is filled with the problems of our world hidden as the 2nd bottom that despite the brief presentation of the characters you will make you care about fate of characters. i highly recommend watching it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/10/23

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Audience Member

This movie's very impressive. And I wish I could see it on Netflix, Tubi, Pluto TV or Crackle.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

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Audience Member

disturbing cartoon that didn't really seem to amount to anything and definitely not for kids

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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Audience Member

This movie had a huge impact in my life

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

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Audience Member

The only drawback is the short runtime. The story, themes, simbolism, characters and animation feel unsettling but fresh and entertaining. I wish we would see more of this world.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

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Director

Pedro Rivero

Director

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Birdboy: The Forgotten Children: US Release Trailer

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Birdboy: The Forgotten Children: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Animal friends hatch a dangerous plan to escape from a post-apocalyptic island, and an outcast called Birdboy unleashes a secret power that could change the world forever.

Director: Alberto Vázquez, Pedro Rivero
Producer: Luis Tosar
Screenwriter: Alberto Vázquez, Pedro Rivero
Distributor: GKIDS
Production Co: ZircoZine, La Competencia Producciones, Basque Films, Abrakan Estudio
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Animation
Original Language: European Spanish
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 15, 2017, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 13, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA): $38.7K
Runtime: 1h 16m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)