The political elements are so ham-fisted and forced. The same as every other "decolonized" adaptation. Humanizing the monster is such a tired trope, too. Just make the demons evil...

The idea of "portal fantasy" is to entertain the audience's escapist desire to be thrust into another world. It can help when the protagonist is as eager to learn about the other world as we are, or if we watch them struggle to cope with their new surroundings but persevere in the end. What he's doing is a choice, but not more "realistic" than Narnia, considering we're talking about fantasy anyway.

You could say The Wonderful Wizard of Oz did it in 1900. Or Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in 1865. Neither protagonist readily accepts what's happening.