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Movie Review – The Good Dinosaur (and The Pixar Theory)

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He’s really only an okay dinosaur.

Okay, yeah, this Pixar film was pretty, but not as pretty as Disney’s  The Lion King, which it also managed to…ahem…totally rip off. It’s also very reminiscent of Dreamwork’s initial Toothless scenes in How to Train Your Dragon.

It’s got some cute moments, and an interesting take on the feral dog boy. He’s a hoot, and seems smarter and more useful than Arlo, the useless titular young Apatosaur.

And from time to time, the story gives us some insight about how dinosaurs might have evolved culturally if that meteor skipped Earth entirely. But I didn’t really buy it. The world-building wasn’t there. This ended up being a buddy travel movie. There was some cleverness, but not up to the level I expect from a Pixar classic.

Why You Should See The Good Dinosaur Anyway

The only reason I saw The Good Dinosaur:  I watched a bunch of videos on The Pixar Theory, and the Cretaceous Era is kind of where the possibly interlinked overarcing story begins. So I found a copy of The Good Dinosaur (and it’s on Netflix right now, so catch it before Disney Plus steals it for their own private channel). I played it while cleaning my room (it’s not gripping enough to really sit and watch, no matter how amusing Sam Elliot is as a T-Rex herding longhorns).

By the way, The Good Dinosaur is an awful name for for movie. Did the producers really not care at all? What does that even mean?

The movie is mostly just sweet. Not bad. In fact, it’s slightly better than average. But I expect far better from Pixar.

For the first time, I’ll give a movie two grades, depending on how savvy and discerning you are in the animation genre.

Movie Grade for adults: C+

Movie Grade for Kiddoes: B (Gentle film, gentle humor, and hey, it only might make you cry.)

The Lion King – Rewatch Review of the Animated Classic

Movie Review – How to Train Your Dragon (No Spoilers)

Pixar Fast Fact Video – Easter Eggs in Incredibles 2

 

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Movie Review – Isle of Dogs

Do see Isle of Dogs if it comes anywhere near your theater. It’s creative and quirky, with a great voiceover cast of big stars…and this is honestly something I haven’t seen before. Everyone in the production really pulled out a stylish little film. There are moments in this stop-animation tale that are sort of strange and artsy (I’m not normally a fan of artsy), but the story settles into a small-scale kind of epic adventure once the dogs start talking. There’s light humor, and “biting” humor, so both kids and adults will be able to “sink their teeth” into this (sorry about the puns).

I appreciated the conceit that the dogs are totally understandable, and the humans speak in gibberish (to them, and therefore to us, unless you speak Japanese). That was pretty clever. All the dogs were given a loving treatment, with their own personalities, and best of all: they didn’t come across as furry talking people (as Disney/Pixar oft do with their animal sidekicks). Their behaviors and conversations were recognizably doggie. Another item: the dogs of “our pack” stoically bear the kind of dorky names people have given them across time, like Chief, Spot, Buddy, Rex, Duke, King, Boss…it was cute.

And be warned, the cats in this movie seem fairly evil. “Finding the Cats” could be a vastly amusing drinking game — the corrupt government officials uniformly carry them around; they appear as statues, as logos on appliances and storefronts, and as iconography incorporated into maps and artwork. It’s somehow both subtle and overt.[pullquote position=”right”] I kept expecting the proliferation of cats to have some great meaning, but that would be too obvious. Isle of Dogs is smarter and sneakier than that.[/pullquote]

Really, the dogs as individuals were great. I could have sat through an entire movie with just the pack, hanging out, talking about favorite foods and their masters, flirting with the females, and composing Canine Haiku. Anytime we cut away to the people in the city, I started losing interest. Fortunately, most of the movie centers on “our pack” in this doggie dystopia, and it’s really groovy. There’s a few heartwarming moments to get teary-eyed, scattered throughout, but no real sob-worthy scenes. (I always like a head’s up if there might be ugly crying in my movie future. Yes, I’m still wary of seeing Toy Story 3.)

And I’m a sucker for hearing Jeff Goldblum’s voice from a dog’s snout. (The man embodies quirk.) Listening for all the celebrity voices was a treat. The screen lists the characters and actors in the intro, but it goes by so quickly that you can’t remember who plays what dog by the time you meet them. Part of the fun is recognizing these A-List actors as the film plays out.

There are a TON of visuals packed into most scenes, and it occurs to me this is the perfect kind of film to own on DVD, and play when you want something enjoyable in the background on house-cleaning day. You’ll keep finding things you missed on prior viewings. I can think of several scenes I wanted to pause the movie at, just to keep up with the casually sly asides going by.

Well paced, easy-going, unusual, and at times highly satiric. A real creative showstopper, Isle of Dogs gets a well-deserved A.

Movie Grade – A

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Movie Review – Coco (RunPee Jilly’s POV)

This wildly beautiful animated film celebrates Latino culture, inter-generational family connections, one possible interpretation of the afterlife, and, most obviously, what the Day of the Dead is all about.

I’m not an expert on Mexican holidays, but it felt authentica. The animated humans were pretty adorable, and the Miguel/Hector interactions  stole my dark little heart. Then the perito…what can I say? He seemed firstly like a typical cutsie sidekick, but we get a little Scooby treat in the end.

Even the cast and plot held together — which in animated films can be hit or miss. Coco is on the level of Inside Out for me: giving me deeper things to think about, with a visual feast to sit back and enjoy.

The “real world” first act was only okay, (which brings the grade down from a perfect A+ score) – kind of like a Mexican Footloose – but once we let any semblance of reality go, crossing the bridge to the afterworld, things become fabuloso, wacky, quirky, and really, really fun.

New anthology films in this undead setting could start a whole new franchise. Like traipsing to a more colorful Narnia, we’d enjoy staying in the brightly festooned, colorful cities, teeming with glitzy skele-people and their bold, big lives-after-death. Nice place to visit, I think.

What this film does best of all (besides making me sob like a baby: be warned) lies in the pretty. It’s gorgeous. Every scene in the land of the dead is phenomenal.  Worth seeing in 3D, and definitely worth owning as a DVD, to play over and over again, no matter what your nationality, or afterlife belief.

Good, solid entertainment for anyone, at any age. This one reaches the ranks of the better animated movies (feel free to post those in the comments for discussion). Darkly beautiful: thanks, Pixar!

Movie Grade: A

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Movie Review – Coco (RunPee Niece’s POV)

This is a movie that anyone who values their family should see. If you’re having a rough go of it with your family, go watch Coco. If you’re as close to them as possible, go watch Coco. I assure you, you will not leave disappointed.

I took my 4 year old daughter to see this, and she ended up making fun of me for my “ugly crying” at the end. Coco did an outstanding job of pulling on heart strings you didn’t even know you had, while still leaving you begging for more.

The animation was spot on and absolutely beautiful. The best part is that the voices weren’t at all annoying like most children’s movies out there. I honestly can’t wait until Coco is released on DVD, because I will be the first in line to buy it.

Movie Grade: A+

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Movie Review – The Man Who Invented Christmas

This charming little film does a nice job ushering in Christmas time at the theaters. I really don’t know how much of this movie was fact or fiction concerning the character of Charles Dickens. In the movie, one moment he’d be in a screaming rage, and the next, a funny, engaging fellow. I think in today’s terms he’d be considered bi-polar. I did enjoy the rambling conversations he’d have with the characters from his book, although it might be said that he didn’t have a firm grip on reality. Ultimately, I found The Man Who Invented Christmas heartwarming, whimsical, and just a bit humorous.

Of course Christopher Plummer made the movie, with his biting humor and sarcasm. Scrooge has been portrayed by who knows how many actors, and I’ve seen at least 10 versions of A Christmas Carol, but Plummer, hands down, is the best.

Dan Stevens owned the role of Charles Dickens. I loved him in Downton Abbey, where his charm made many female viewers tune in every week, and happily, he brought it here.

I don’t know if TMWIC will become a seasonal favorite, but for this year it has become mine.

And really, who cares if Charles Dickens had a few character flaws?

Movie Grade – B