Review of FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992) by Aaron A — 04 Jul 2012

"Gravity works. ".

Synopsis: When a sprite named Crysta shrinks a human boy, Zak, down to her size, he vows to help the magical fairy folk stop a greedy logging company from destroying their home, the pristine rainforest known as FernGully.

There's a moment in Bill Kroyer's FernGully: The Last Rainforest where our human hero looks at the screen after just meeting a particularly strange inhabitant of the titular forest, as he looks at the screen he gives an ugly expression of dumbfounded bewilderment. For the most part, it's an image that sums up my experience with Ferngully: The last Rainforest.

Don't get me wrong I've nothing against the picture's eco-friendly message, in fact i'd say i'm more concerned about our natural world than I am concerned about economic progress. The problem is that I can't stand the manner in which FernGully goes about it's activism. The film is so unsophisticated that it's a slap in the face to childrens' intelligences everywhere, or at the very least those adults foolish enough to watch the picture with the children. One could easily map out the plot-line of the picture from the opening sequence alone.

Characters are completely one dimensional, evil is telegraphed by either their nefarious auras, slobbery build, or inclusion in the human race. Good is characterized by hating everything not concerned with the rainforest even if it's still a natural element of this world; and by being fantastically fit and attractive.

Dull characterizations, non-existant depth, and incredibly boring concept of humans are bad because they aren't tree huggers, FernGully: The Last Rainforest is poorly effective propaganda, and nothing more.