LAMYA'S POEM -- A Harmless, Underwhelming Modern-Day Fable

Review by Sean Boelman

We’ve reached an era in animation where animated films can be so much more than a kids’ movie, so it is frustrating to see when a movie is seemingly held back by its need to pander to a young audience. Lamya’s Poem falls victim to that pitfall, with a potentially important story weighed down by an overly cutesy approach.

The film follows a young refugee girl who finds herself inspired when she finds a book of poetry by the 13th century Persian poet Rumi. If it isn’t obvious, the intention seems to be to inspire real-life young people with this story. It’s undeniably well-intended — and it doesn’t become inadvertently insensitive — but it still feels like it is simply not enough.

The movie blends the stories of the fictional girl and her turmoil in the Syrian refugee crisis with the stories from the poems of Rumi. While it is understandable why Kroenemer wanted to use such an important cultural text to draw a comparison to an urgent issue like this, the result ends up feeling somewhat insincere in both regards.

There is no denying that young children who watch the film will certainly come away with some good messages on perseverance, the power of storytelling, and the importance of keeping in touch with one’s own culture despite obstacles. However, these themes — the last one in particular — are ineffective in a movie made by an American filmmaker in English, and seemingly for an English-speaking audience.

Perhaps the most disappointing thing about Lamya’s Poem is that it fails to take advantage of the opportunity to say something meaningful about the refugee crisis. This film’s target audience is hugely impressionable and could be taught a thing or two about compassion by a movie like this. Although there are scenes of racism and xenophobia and its consequences, it doesn’t do enough to where it could spark a meaningful conversation between parents and their children.

Rumi is voiced by actor Mena Massoud (the live-action remake of Aladdin), and he is the highlight of the film. The eponymous fictional protagonist is played by a young Canadian actress, Millie Davis. To give credit where credit is due, Davis does a good job. However, it’s disappointing on the part of Kroenemer to have seen this part be whitewashed.

The animation is rather uneven. For every bit of rough motion, there is a beautiful backdrop or lovely character design. It makes sense that there is an almost storybook-like element to the movie given how much of a role written storytelling plays in the plot and message, but filmmaker Alex Kronemer doesn’t do as much with the visual juxtaposition as he does the narrative juxtaposition.

There are some things that Lamya’s Poem does well, but it can’t escape the feeling of being overly sanitized — even for a young audience. Remember that movie Where Is Anne Frank? that most people did not like very much? Lamya’s Poem is similar, but for a different culture and slightly better. At least it’s a merciful 88 minutes long, making it a harmless, if mostly unaffecting fable for the young ones.

Lamya’s Poem hits VOD on February 21.

Rating: 2.5/5