The the biggest flaw
of Pixar's “The Good Dinosaur” is its release date: it arrived in
theaters less than five months after “Inside Out” which is
arguably one of Pixar's most accomplished and original films. And
because “Inside Out” is so great, people's expectations for the
next great Pixar film is unbelievably high. Having said that “The
Good Dinosaur” is tremendously entertaining and emotionally
charged film with stunning animation, funny characters, and a simple
but involving story. It's certainly more of a traditional tale, but
it's a fun adventure that is certainly to please anyone who enjoys a
good family film in the vein of “Homeward Bound,” “The Land
Before Time,” or the all-time classic “The Lion King.”
“The Good
Dinosaur” begins with the interesting premise of Earth not being
hit by the meteor that caused the dinosaurs to become extinct, which
lets humans and dinosaurs evolve to share the planet. While nothing
truly original is done with this concept it just allows humans and
dinosaurs to co-exist. We're introduced to the shy, and always-afraid
Arlo and his family. In true Disney form Arlo is “different” from
the rest of his family and longs to feel wanted and needed and “make
his mark” on the family farm. And since this is a film released by
Disney, it's not long before Alro finds himself with less family
members than when he was born and off on his own after a storm washes
him away from his home. Lost and afraid he must make the journey back
home.
To be perfectly
honest: is the film perfect? Not by any means. This doesn't quote
capture the magic of most of the other top tier Pixar films and
story-wise it pretty much hits all the standard beats. But it's
completely engaging and I found myself identifying so strongly with
Arlo and his journey to reunite with his family that I got more way
choked up than was probably necessary. The motion arrives as Arlo's
“enemy” a small, dog-like human boy quickly becomes his best
friend. The two bond over similar loses in their lives and become
dependent on each other for survival in the wild. There's not clear
cut villain here, it's mostly Mother Nature that seems to be the
biggest threat though other dinosaur species make Arlo's journey more
difficult including some nasty flying dinosaurs and a few raptors
that are depicted as hick trailer trash. It's the t-rexes who
actually turn out to be quite friendly.
“The Good
Dinosaur” had suffered from production problems (the film was
originally slated for release last year in 2014 but got pushed back)
and you can tell. The story is a bit inconsistent, characters come
and go and the film is rather episodic (like most road trip movies
tend to be) so you can't help but feel that the film suffers from
perhaps too many cooks in the kitchen. If this was a film released by
any other studio it would certainly make no difference. You'd never
really assume this was a Pixar film if you didn't know that going in;
however, it's still quite fun and enjoyable for what is is. Why does
ever Pixar film have to be so original and high-concept anyways?
Anyone who is a fan
of good animated films will certainly find something to enjoy about
“The Good Dinosaur.” It may not be Pixar's best but it's far from
their worst. It's a pretty standard story but it has richly defined
main characters features an emotionally engaging story about loss and
the importance of home. And like any other Pixar movie, bring some
tissues. GRADE: B+
Feature Trailer for The Good Dinosaur on TrailerAddict.
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