Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon Parent Guide

Deep in the Amazon rainforest, the village of Candamo is suffering. Their chief is dying, people are falling sick, and the river is full of dead fish. Ainbo (Lola Raie), a young wannabe hunter, decides to fix the curse that is plaguing her home. Joined by her spirit guides, Dillo the armadillo (Dino Andrade) and Vaca the tapir(Joe Hernandez), she sets out into the jungle to prove herself and save her people.

Film is a visual medium. What this means is that the story is told both through dialogue and visuals. The team behind Ainbo seem to have forgotten this most basic premise of cinema, leading to dialogue that doesn’t match what’s on screen. In the beginning, we are told that Candamo is declining due to a curse. However, there is no evidence of this aside from one scene with a handful of dead fish in the river and the chief coughing a few times. The sky and water are clear, the trees are lush, and the villagers seem well fed and happy. This phenomenon happens multiple times, where the words don’t match the visuals. It makes for a confusing and somewhat frustrating viewing experience.

On top of that, the script is entirely a plot of convenience. Things just kind of happen for no real reason, and the main story beats are all MacGuffins or Deus ex Machinas. The characters are only as smart or deep as the plot needs them to be at any one time, and the spirit guide characters are extremely convenient when the story requires them to be, or completely useless otherwise. They are also annoying, which doesn’t help their case. In other words, this is the laziest possible version of the archetypal hero’s journey.

I can forgive mediocre writing if there are well developed themes or messages, but this film also lacks those. The trailers made it seem like there would be a strong environmental message against industrializing the rainforest, but there isn’t. That is barely even a plot point. There are some messages around courage I guess, but honestly that’s a stretch. Yes, there is a lack of negative content, but I don’t think that makes up for everything else. My 5-year-old actually got out of his seat at the movie theater and started walking around, which he never does. If he’s bored, I can guarantee most other viewers will be too. If you’re looking for some all-ages entertainment about a girl going on a journey to reverse a curse that’s destroying her village, just watch Moana instead.