Review: Imagine has noble goals and a unique approach, but stumbles in its execution

Imagine is not quite like anything I've ever seen, and it knows that that will be the case for just about anyone who watches it. The film opens with a lot of text explaining its unusual origin story and production method. There's even a Star Wars-style bit of scrolling text. The filmmakers are clearly really proud of what they've done here, and I get why. This film was born in the midst of the pandemic, when covid pushed us all into isolation, and the internet became a bastion of connection. Imagine boasts having more than 400 writers who contributed to it via Google Doc. The project was then honed and refined by various people, including Indigenous Australian writer-directors Jack Manning Bancroft and Tyson Yunkaporta, who served as shepherds of the project.

It's hard to imagine (lol) a film with more noble goals. Imagine seeks to impart wisdom from various Indigenous leaders and activists, often using found audio (from podcasts and the like) to give voice to the various colorful characters who pop up throughout. The film positions itself as a celebration of humanity, particularly when we seek to find meaningful connection with each other and serve as thoughtful stewards of the world around us. It recognizes the potential for technological tools to only amplify the bad, but the film itself embodies the power of those same tools to empower us to make the world a better place.

The use of that pre-existing audio leads to some very strange scenes, where dialogue doesn't necessarily flow because, well, it isn't dialogue. Much of the film consists of various characters presenting their philosophical thoughts and views on humanity and the structures we've created (and often become enslaved to). It's a lot of heady stuff, and a lot of very interesting stuff. I was particularly taken with a discussion of how human beings wall themselves off from the past, putting it beneath glass so it feels inaccessible and distant. Another bit that stuck with me is a discussion of how our ancestors give us the law, but our descendants give us our ethics. These intellectually stimulating bon mots come fast and furious in Imagine, which does make the film a somewhat challenging sit. It sometimes feels like going rapid-fire through a bunch of classes on civics, philosophy, history, etc., and we sometimes jump from idea to idea so quickly that it can be hard to keep up. But most viewers will, like me, probably find a few ideas or philosophies that really resonate and settle.

I haven't even gotten to the plot of the movie because it almost feels secondary, a mere framework that allows all of these fascinating ideas to be given air. The film opens on Kim, a nonbinary teenager who is sitting in their room, doom-scrolling, getting magically teleported to the middle of a seemingly endless ocean. There, they're joined by Jeff, an alien dog who looks like an alebrije, who serves as a companion, guide, and sounding board. 

Kim and Jeff are presented with a ticking clock -- they have twenty-four hours to visit five islands -- and that's honestly kind of it. I don't know which areas count as islands, and the countdown basically never comes up again, so it feels a bit loosey-goosey as we move through the movie. It's possibly a side effect of too many cooks being in the proverbial kitchen, or maybe the filmmakers really just wanted to go with whatever flow let them include the most soundbites possible, but the momentum here is very start-and-stop, and quite strange.

Stranger still is trying to figure out who the target audience is. The film has a very cute aesthetic. Jeff is a standout, but there are a lot of really cool-looking and adorable supporting characters who crop up, like a giant platypus and a cyborg shaman. On the surface, this looks like a kid-friendly movie, but the dense dialogue and occasional bits of swearing make me think this isn't a great option for younger viewers. I fancy myself pretty smart, and even my eyes began to glaze over during some of the longer discussions of millinerianism and the like. Kids would likely get extra antsy trying to sit through it.

The animation was also a collaborative process, so we get some of that fun style-switching throughout that you sometimes see with fan-made projects where they remake existing movies. Here, though, there's a stronger through-line, with everything fitting quite nicely together. However, unless I'm mistaken, I did spot some AI-generated imagery during this, which is super disappointing in a film that's all about human connection and collaboration. It's not a lot, but it definitely bummed me out to see.

I think Imagine is most successful as a creative exercise, one that allowed a lot of different people who might not normally get to be involved in the filmmaking process (especially Indigenous kids) to get their hands dirty and help bring something to the screen. As a film, it ends up being a strange beast that is fitfully fun, often thought-provoking, and consistently uneven. It gets major points for its unique approach, and for the final film being distinct, but I wish it had found a more compelling, cohesive way to weave its admirable goals into the narrative form.

If you have a school or organization that wants to book a screening of Imagine, you can find information on how to do so here.

If you want to learn more about how you can help the good work done by AIME (Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience), who are behind Imagine, check out this post or their site.