Rikkie the Stork – A Stork’s Journey (2017)

Directed by: Toby Genkel, Reza Memari | 85 minutes | animation, adventure | Dutch voice cast: Georgina Verbaan, Patrick Martens, Matheu Hinzen

Storks are haughty creatures. That can only be clear from the start. What must it be like for a sparrow when they look down on you both literally and figuratively? This is about the start for ‘Rikkie the Stork’.

Rikkie is a sparrow and just before his egg hatches, his real parents fall prey to a predator. He is found by (ok, they exist after all) a sympathetic stork who takes care of him. This to the dismay of her husband, the leader of the group. Realizing that the impending migration to Africa is not for little Rikkie, they choose to leave him behind while he sleeps. Rikkie, who doesn’t know any better that he is a real stork, doesn’t let this sit on her mind and makes the trip to Africa. Of course he doesn’t do this alone, but with animals he encounters along the way. The journey has peaks and valleys and Rikkie gets to know herself well.

The setup for the story feels a bit cliché. Especially the traveling companions do not really surprise in that respect. Every animal has its own problems. Olga (and Oleg) is a schizophrenic owl and Kiki is a parakeet about to come out. Nice idea, but the fact that the jokes should come from that feels a bit easy. But what to expect for children? It will not be a spoiler that at the end of the story Rikkie knows who he is and that his environment therefore sees him for full.

Still, ‘Rikkie the Stork’ is generally entertaining. The underlying message of “accept yourself” is portrayed by all three travel companions, but is never overstated. In this way, Olga is more complete with her multiple personalities and Kiki overcomes the fears that hold him back. In addition to this message, the film also contains some social criticism. Carrier pigeons sit on the electrical lines of communication in the film and are so addicted to it that they forget to enjoy the world around them. Their addiction is audibly shaped in a fun way through the use of the well-known sounds of mobile phones and computers. The film also has some funny puns, of which the crow in San Remo, Italy called Don Kraaileone is the best.

‘Rikkie de Ooievaar’ will not surprise you in terms of story, but is reasonably successful in execution. Children learn that you should above all be yourself and the film manages to convey that message in a successful, not too pedantic way.