The latest offering from Pixar, The Good Dinosaur has had it's fair share of problems. Primarily the original director, Bob Peterson was removed from the movie due to having trouble with the third act of the movie. Not to mention the original 2014 release date slipping to this week.
Unfortunately the production problems have carried across onto the finished movie (Peter Sohn picked up the slack on the production) which at times is completely devoid of heart, soul and an actual story. Which is NOT what we've come to expect from Pixar.
What would have happened if the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs never happened? Instead, it missed the earth? That's where the movie kicks off and initially it's an interesting idea. While Pixar have given us talking toys, talking cars and talking monsters, talking dinosaurs who like a spot of farming really presents a problem in believability. Yes, I know it's an animated movie and while we easily suspended belief in the past, the opening few minutes here really can disconnect an audience from what they're watching. And when a young feral boy called Spot appears, things get a bit more unbelievable, as humans are viewed as vermin by the dinosaurs. However, our intrepid young dinosaur, Arlo soon befriends the rabid boy and the two embark on a journey that, thankfully pulls itself together more and more as the movie progresses.
Parents be warned though. The Good Dinosaur is one of the darkest Pixar movies yet as it deals with loss and death and manages to punch you full force into the emotions on more than one occasion. Mix in a beheading (seriously, the most unexpected moment in the movie, and a brilliant one at that) and some toilet humour and you're left with a charming and funny tale, that is visually jaw dropping.
The hyper realistic backgrounds and landscapes are a stark contrast to the more cartoon-like Dinosaurs and are some of the most stunning computer generated images you'll see this year. Words really fail to describe how beautiful The Good Dinosaur really is. In fact, it's one of the best looking Pixar movies to date.
It's just a shame that The Good Dinosaur struggles to get off the start line, as the characters are unlikeable at first, not helped by the fact of a voice cast that really don't sound like they're trying. As mentioned above, the characters themselves, particular our farming family of dinosaurs are a bit too much to take in and it really is hard to make any kind of connection to them, at least in the beginning.
Once the movie finally gets going, it's very good. Complete with some wonderful touches and nods to the likes of King Kong and City Slickers (seriously!!!) there is more than enough here for everyone. So trample your way to a cinema today and check out The Good Dinosaur!!!! And don't forget to bring the tissues! You'll need them!!!!!
Unfortunately the production problems have carried across onto the finished movie (Peter Sohn picked up the slack on the production) which at times is completely devoid of heart, soul and an actual story. Which is NOT what we've come to expect from Pixar.
What would have happened if the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs never happened? Instead, it missed the earth? That's where the movie kicks off and initially it's an interesting idea. While Pixar have given us talking toys, talking cars and talking monsters, talking dinosaurs who like a spot of farming really presents a problem in believability. Yes, I know it's an animated movie and while we easily suspended belief in the past, the opening few minutes here really can disconnect an audience from what they're watching. And when a young feral boy called Spot appears, things get a bit more unbelievable, as humans are viewed as vermin by the dinosaurs. However, our intrepid young dinosaur, Arlo soon befriends the rabid boy and the two embark on a journey that, thankfully pulls itself together more and more as the movie progresses.
Parents be warned though. The Good Dinosaur is one of the darkest Pixar movies yet as it deals with loss and death and manages to punch you full force into the emotions on more than one occasion. Mix in a beheading (seriously, the most unexpected moment in the movie, and a brilliant one at that) and some toilet humour and you're left with a charming and funny tale, that is visually jaw dropping.
The hyper realistic backgrounds and landscapes are a stark contrast to the more cartoon-like Dinosaurs and are some of the most stunning computer generated images you'll see this year. Words really fail to describe how beautiful The Good Dinosaur really is. In fact, it's one of the best looking Pixar movies to date.
It's just a shame that The Good Dinosaur struggles to get off the start line, as the characters are unlikeable at first, not helped by the fact of a voice cast that really don't sound like they're trying. As mentioned above, the characters themselves, particular our farming family of dinosaurs are a bit too much to take in and it really is hard to make any kind of connection to them, at least in the beginning.
Once the movie finally gets going, it's very good. Complete with some wonderful touches and nods to the likes of King Kong and City Slickers (seriously!!!) there is more than enough here for everyone. So trample your way to a cinema today and check out The Good Dinosaur!!!! And don't forget to bring the tissues! You'll need them!!!!!
