Goldbeak (2021)

 Goldbeak, is disappointingly not (as I first assumed) a James Bond spoof with an all-bird cast. Instead, it's a talking animal movie about an eagle that was raised by chickens. A Chinese production, it was directed by Dong Long and Nigel W. Tierney. Vivian Yoon, Jeff Sloniker and Robert N. Skir are credited as screenwriters. It was produced by Grindstone Entertainment Group, and was distributed by Lionsgate in the United States and Dazzler Media in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Dazzler previously distributed Chinese animated features White Snake, Boonie Bears: Time Twist and Chang 'An.

The English language version features the voices of David Henrie, Valkyrae, Debra Wilson, Mick Wingert, Lisa Ortiz, Crispin Freeman, Jas Patrick, Sean Kenin, SungWon Cho, Francisco Carrillo, Barrett Leddy, Kyle McCarley and more.

The film starts with a surprisingly dark scene with Goldbeak's parents (Silverwing, the mayor of Avian City, and his wife, who apparently barely merits a mention) perishing in a plane crash. Silverwing survives and is subsequently found by a kindly hen, who raises him as if he was her own. But as he grows, he longs to soar like the eagle he is, and to learn about where he came from. So he sets off for the bright lights of Avian city, but not before getting flying lessons from the mysterious Guru (voiced by star voice actor Crispin Freeman). Arriving in the city he finds family, in the form of his uncle (the city's new mayor) and purpose in the form of The Bird Sanctuary's Feathered Patrol, but he remains unaware of a sinister plot that threatens his adopted family.

Goldbeak isn't a very well known film. It doesn't even have an entry on Wikipedia. But does it deserve its obscurity or is it a hidden gem? Sadly, it's closer to the former as because although the film may not be absolutely terrible, neither is it very good. It's probably diverting enough for very young audiences, but older children and adults will probably (rightly) expect more from their entertainment.

The plot is extremely basic and simple, and there's nothing here you won't have seen a thousand times before. The problem is that you'll have seen it done better dozens of times. The "x raised by x" set-up is a classic children's trope, and "eagle raised by chickens" is a fun one, as it goes. The problem is that the film doesn't do anything interesting with it.

The film features as part of its centrepieces many sequences of flight. However they feel a bit flat and are lacking the sense of wonder and magic found in the flight sequences in the likes of the How To Train Your Dragon trilogy or Kiki's Delivery Service. The sequences lack any weight to them.

The film's deficiencies might be overlooked, or at least somewhat reduced if the animation was impressive. Unfortunatley, Goldbeak isn't much of a looker either. The animation is decidedly cheap looking, with rudimentary character designs. The design of Avian City is quite imaginative though.

Goldbeak won't be the worst animated film you've ever seen- it may not even come close but it's a long way from the best.  It passes the time and provides some positive messages for young audiences, but it's lacking in practically every element of its execution. Ultimately, Goldbeak is a disappointment. 

 FORMAT: MOVIE AVAILABLE ON: CINEMA RELEASE/VOD/DIGITAL FROM: Dazzler Media/ Lionsgate RATING: PG [US]PG[UK]  RUNNING TIME : 1 hr34 mins

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IN A NUTSHELL: Goldbeak Never Really Takes Off

★★☆☆☆

Goldbeak is in UK and Irish Cinemas from April 25, 2025