Arco (dir. Ugo Bienvenu)

By: Adam Freed

Set against a backdrop of an uncertain environmental future, writer and director Ugo Bienvenu crafts a visually stunning and thematically prescient animated film in Arco. In the year 2075, the world consists of endless possibilities for ten-year-old Iris, who with her infant brother, are left in the care of her sentient android caretaker Mikki.  As Iris’ parents are away working during the week, dinnertime conversations with their holograms have to suffice as Mikki picks up the heaviest load raising the two children.  What makes Neon Studios’ Arco such an immersive experience, is that 50 years in the future many of the minor tech-driven societal evolutions laid out on screen feel not only possible, but plausible.  The monotony of caring for her baby brother, going to school, and living life according to her absentee parents’ design, leaves only enough room for Iris to become a compulsive dreamer.  Amongst the simmering cauldron of Iris’ desires is to experience adventure and look to the darkening skies of reality with the unmistakable optimism of youth.  Iris’ curiosity is sparked in the form of a rainbow colored streak that crashlands in the woods not far from her home, thus introducing her to the titular Arco, a boy from the future whose power and story are initially unclear to her.

At its best, Arco is a gorgeously hand-drawn animated film revolving around two prepubescent children from drastically different moments in the future of humankind.  Their unlikely friendship drips with adventure, hope, and compassion as the two work to help one another, while simultaneously learning more about themselves and their existence than they could have ever imagined.  For Arco, witnessing life prior to the environmental catastrophe that shapes his existence illuminates the importance of a human connection that has gone mostly dormant in the future in which he lives.  For Iris, experiencing global change in real time, coupled with what she is able to learn from her strange new friend, sends her on a path that redefines the purpose of her young life.

Arco, originally a French language production, has been dubbed into English using a notable list of Hollywood actors.  Audiences are likely recognize the voices of Will Ferrell (Step Brothers), America Ferrera (Barbie), Andy Samberg (Palm Springs), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), and Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight).  Although the connective tissue of the English language and familiar voices is welcoming, Ugo Bienvenu’s film would be compelling enough in its initial form.  Original animated films that have something meaningful to say about humanity feel like an unfortunate rarity.  Arco is a worthwhile family adventure worthy of repeat viewings as soon as it takes rainbow colored flight in theaters this fall.

Target Score: 7.5/10 Arco is a rare gift of an animated film that captures the intensity and importance of global environmental concern while simultaneously delivering upon the artistic and genre-based promises that it makes to its audience.

Arco is included in Movie Archer's coverage of the 61st Chicago International Film Festival