Butterfly Tale (2023)

By CinemaSerf

"Patrick" is a butterfly with a problem. One of his wings is a bit stunted so he cannot fly. When it comes to their annual migration, this means that he and best pal "Marty" - an enthusiastic caterpillar yet to mature, must stay behind guarding the milkweed. Meantime, "Jennifer" is to be tasked with pulling their emergency supply of this fodder as they travel and the two to be left behind decide to stowaway! Of course they are soon discovered, as is an altitude problem for poor old "Jennifer" too, but not before their journey has begun in earnest and the flutter is way more concerned with getting to the "Orange Forest" without getting munched upon by three marauding and very peckish birds. I quite enjoyed this. The animation is colourful and vibrant; the likeable characters - maybe not so much the occasionally annoying caterpillar - offer us the usual qualities of perseverance, loyalty and teamwork while their pursuing nemeses offer up an excuse for some lightly comedic writing and slapstick with some silk and a bin lorry. I quite liked their own team boffin "Cornelius" too - and though it's perhaps a little bit long, it's a perfectly watchable family feature with a few engaging characters.