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Ainbo: Amazon Princess

A young Amazonian girl bounding around on a tree like Mowgli in The Jungle Book opens this Peruvian/Dutch/German co-production. We soon discover that this is the Ainbo of the title, and that her best friend, Zumi, is about to be crowned leader of their tribe. A relatively quick whip- round of characters introduces us to the two leads; a smarmy village thug called Atok; Zumi’s father and current tribal chief, Huarinka; Ainbo’s foster mother, Chuni; as well as two ‘loopy’ spirit guides, Dillo and Vaca (a bespectacled armadillo and a clumsy tapir).

The environmental theme is also introduced early on, in the form of dying fish and disease in the village, attributed to a curse but, as we find out later, the result of something more real, and more troubling. Ainbo is convinced by her spirit guides to embark on a trek to find a magical root that will save the village. On her journey she must deal with various perils, ranging from a pursuing Atok, and a gigantic sloth in his volcano home, to the jungle demon, Yakuruna, the appearance of whom might be a bit much for the smaller humans in the audience.

Throughout Ainbo’s quest, Zumi is trying to juggle her new leadership duties with her concerns for her best friend’s safety. This sisterly dynamic plays out in a familiar way - it’s basically Elsa and Anna in the jungle but without all the irritating singing. Co-directors Richard Claus and Jose Zelada keep the pace tight and the sight gags light, while also attempting to address the actual ‘curse’ of the Amazon, the despoliation of nature. The message of standing up to the corporate vandals is admirable, though at one point it strays dangerously close to lumping modern medicine in with the mining companies’ dirty tricks.

There are some nicely rendered visuals (with art direction by Pierre Salazar), especially in the village scenes, and the film’s resolution, while a little sad, is also affirming. Unlike some of Pixar’s work, there’s not much here for adults, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s refreshing to occasionally find a film that aims squarely at a younger audience.

Now for some reason, this film is subtitled Amazon Princess in some territories and Spirit of the Amazon in others. I reckon the latter is more apt, as you'll understand when you watch it.

Ainbo: Amazon Princess (in Australia) is showing - where cinemas are open - from Sep 16th.

[Most of this review was also published on the Film Ink site - https://www.filmink.com.au/reviews/ainbo-amazon-princess/]

See also:

For Amazon content you can't go past Werner Herzog's Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972), and The Jungle Book (1967), directed by Wolfgang Reitherman (cracking name!) was the first film I saw at the movies. A few years after initial release, thanks.

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