Arco (2025)

-Written by Kristin Ciliberto.

Some audiences will find the charm in Ugo Bienvenu’s directorial feature debut, Arco. Bienvenu's coming-of-age animated adventure has been nominated for Best Animated Film at the 83rd Golden Globes and the 31st Critics’ Choice Awards. It is also sure to be nominated at the 98th Oscars. What makes Arco is its wondrous, striking visuals, as Bienvenu takes inspiration from Studio Ghibli and sci-fi films like Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar.

Premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, Arco was directed, co-written, and produced by Bienvenu. The sci-fi story is set in 2075, as 10-year-old Iris (voiced by Romy Fay) encounters a strange boy who drops from the sky wearing a shimmering rainbow cloak and a crystal on his forehead. Arco (voiced by Juliano Krue Valdi) lives in the year 2932, where time travel exists with the help of his colorful cloak. Iris makes it her duty to help get Arco home to his family. I saw the English-dubbed version, featuring Academy Award-winning actress Natalie Portman (who also serves as a producer) voicing two characters. The film also stars Chris Hemsworth, Will Ferrell, Flea, Andy Samberg, Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and America Ferrera.

Arco is set in a highly futuristic world, and the film is being hailed as one of the best animated films of 2025. It's understandable, and the hype for the film is warranted. However, I did not love it, nor did I connect with Bienvenu’s film as much as I had hoped. The animation is the film's strongest aspect: a 2D animated film packed with colorful characters. The animation will surely draw audiences in with its color palette and hold their attention. Young audiences will be amazed by the colors, and Bienvenu’s film does strive to deliver a visually beautiful experience. Still, I can’t help but compare it to other films. As a sci-fi story, it’s very forgettable with an uneven narrative focus. The film’s conclusion also lacks an emotional impact. 

There wasn’t anything that impressed me, but I did admire the talent featured. The voice acting in the French version might have been better, but with the voice talent provided, there are side characters who are not worth caring about. Robots are raising children, and the character that stands out the most here is Mikki (Alma Jodorowski/Swan Arlaud). Expect audiences to love Mikki, Iris’ paternal figure, and caretaker robot. Mikki was based on Bienvenu’s popular graphic novel System Preference. The character of Mikki is lovable, brings a lot of emotion to the story, and is the best character.

Arco explores technology, imagination, and friendship; and the story also explores a vital issue: climate change. Binevenu balances the dark realities of climate change with optimism and the hope of building a better future. As much as I participated in the film, looking to make an impact, especially on a critical matter, the overall project left me feeling empty. I was looking to be mind-blown, like when I saw Flow (which premiered at Cannes in 2024); however, I may have overemphasized the anticipation. No doubt Arco will find the right audience who will be enthralled by the animation. 

Directed by Ugo Bienvenu. 

Written by Ugo Bienvenu & Félix de Givry. 

Starring Margot Ringard Oldra/Romy Fay, Oscar Tresanini/Juliano Krue Valdi, Nathanaël Perrot/Wyatt Danieluk, etc.

5.5/10 = WORTH WATCHING, BUT YOU’VE BEEN WARNED