With countless production problems, including a director change, countless delays, and a whopping 6 years in production, The Good Dinosaur has finally made its way to the big screen, and I'm happy to say that it was well worth the wait. The Good Dinosaur is a marvel, not just visually, but in its storytelling and its characters. It is a truly heartfelt, yet epic adventure film that hits all the right notes.
The Good Dinsoaur takes us into an alternate world where the asteroid that destroyed the dinosaurs completely missed earth and dinosaurs lived on. This is a very inventive concept but, of course, that's not all there is to this film! The main story of the film is about a young Apatosaurus named Arlo, who works with his family on a farm. However, he is afraid of pretty much everything. When a "critter," which is really a human boy, starts to steal the family's crops, Arlo falls into a river trying to track him down and ends up miles away from his family. Arlo slowly builds a friendship with this human boy, who he names Spot, and they both try to find their way back home as Arlo slowly learns to cope with his fears.
Despite what some may think, this is a fantastic story with a powerful bond between two unlikely friends. Many are saying that the story is more simple and not as complex as other Pixar films. Is it true that it's not as complex as, say, Inside Out? Yes. But is that a bad thing, especially in this kind of film? Not in the slightest. This is a film that is clearly going for something completely different and just because it might not be as complex in its main story, does not mean that it is a bare bones film lacking any sort of complexity. In fact, it is a very complex film, just in different ways than previous Pixar films. Here, the complexity falls in many different areas, including the powerful relationship building between Arlo and Spot, not to mention all the unpredictable obstacles that constantly get in Arlo and Spot's way. These obstacles are particularly caused by nature, which is probably the most unpredictable antagonist there could be because it's so naturally dangerous and Pixar really wasn't afraid to show just how dangerous it could be.
One other amazing aspect in the film is its minimal use of dialogue. There's dialogue in only about 20% of the film. Everything else? All visual storytelling. They develop, not only the story, but the relationship between Arlo and Spot so beautifully with hardly any dialogue. Spot doesn't even say a single word in the entire film! This was a very ambitious move for Pixar. Instead of making it very talkative, like so many animated and live-action films outside of the Pixar library, they chose to let the story be told through actions and expressions, rather than words which I think is very bold and not only brings a more unique personality to the film, but lets the world and characters breathe and gives you time to take in all the beauty of this film.
The animation is jaw-droppingly gorgeous. The backgrounds, set design and overall animation looks very real. However, the word for it actually isn't "photorealistic" like everyone is saying. From articles I've read, Pixar filmmakers and animators are calling it "painterly realism" and I definitely see that in the animation more than photorealism. This realistic art style was done not only to portray nature as an antagonist and a character and make it feel very threatening yet really beautiful, but also so Arlo will feel out of place given the difference between the backgrounds and his design. This leads me to my next point. While the backgrounds are real looking, the character designs are stylized and "cartoony." Some people might not like the character designs, especially in contrast to such real looking backgrounds, but I fell in love with them! This is the style Pixar goes with for many of their anthropomorphic characters and I'm not sure why Pixar is only now getting so much criticism about it. These kinds of character designs are also completely necessary in this film! As I mentioned before, this is a film that is mostly visual without any dialogue. This means, they also use the emotions and expressions of the characters to tell the story. So, of course, they need cartoony kind of characters that can emote such expressions. The designs might not look real, but they make the characters feel real and a lot more human since they can express more personality with these stylized designs. This film would not have worked at all if the dinosaurs looked realistic.
You know, all of these aspects remind me of one particular classic Walt Disney film. Of course, I'm talking about Bambi. With its minimal dialogue, having nature as an antagonist and its realistic backgrounds yet stylized character design, The Good Dinosaur is pretty much a modern day Bambi! In fact, this film feels very much like other classic Walt Disney era films and 30's and 40's animation as well! I definitely found some inspiration from those films, just like all of the other Pixar films that take inspiration from those masterpieces. This is something I find absolutely amazing! I love the film's classic feel and I love how there are still films like what Walt used to make still being made today! It might not be the most popular way to go in some people's eyes, but that's only because they're not appreciative of this form of storytelling, which is fine. This kind of storytelling goes very much against the norm and is not something that you see often in modern day cinema, so of course some people will feel uncomfortable with such a different film being made and won't appreciate the film in the way it should be. But fellow fans of classic animation will instantly love this style and appreciate what the film is going for.
Also, this is a surprisingly violent film. This one definitely doesn't hold back! Of course, violence is not new territory for Pixar, but the violence in this film can definitely be seen as more shocking than other Pixar films. This is yet another great aspect of the film as it shows how things truly are in the wild. Just like other Pixar films, this one doesn't pander to kids. Pixar makes films for everyone to love, appreciate and enjoy without any set target demographic in mind and The Good Dinosaur is certainly no exception.
Another aspect where the film really shines is in its characters and character development. We have the two main characters, Arlo and Spot, who form an unlikely and beautiful friendship. Their relationship feels so genuine and their chemistry is so perfect, it will certainly bring tears to your eyes at many points in the film. Arlo and Spot also have very developed character arcs. Also, while we have our very strong main characters, we also have a stellar group of secondary characters. There are many strange and wonderful characters that Arlo and Spot meet on their way home, all of whom have very creative and colorful personalities. It is definitely fun to watch them interact with our main protagonists.
The humor in this film is also very unique. Though it's actually not a film that would be considered a flat out comedy, that doesn't mean that there are a bunch of hilarious moments. But the humor is very different from what we normally see in film. There's an interesting balance between the kinds of jokes you would expect from Pixar, but there's also a lot of dark comedy. Not to mention that the film itself is very strange and psychedelic. You'll see what I mean when you watch the film, but not only is this strangeness and psychedelic tone more than evident in many scenes in the film, but also in the flat out weird and eccentric characters Arlo and Spot meet on their journey. This is all very unusual to see unfold and it just makes the film so much more unique.
The film also explores very meaningful themes. The biggest theme that is dealt with in this film is fear and how you must learn to live with it, rather than conquer it. It's okay to be scared, it's a normal feeling that everyone goes through, but how you deal with it is what truly counts. Arlo is afraid of pretty much everything but throughout the film, he learns how to deal with his fears and discover what he is capable of, rather than just getting rid of his fears altogether. These themes can resonate with anyone. No matter how old you are, you will be able to relate to these themes and these characters easily. As someone who used to have anxiety at a very young age (strangely enough, I was actually around Arlo's age), I found myself relating to Arlo as a character and I think anyone can relate to him!
The directing here is fantastic. Pixar veteran Pete Sohn, who was the director for the Pixar short film Partly Cloudy, the voice actor for Emile in Ratatouille and Squishy in Monsters University and even has a voice role in this film, finally makes his feature film directorial debut here. Even though he was not originally the director of this film (Bob Peterson was originally the director until the director change), you can tell that he still took inspiration from experiences in his life and brought some real truth to this film because it feels so genuine. He took a very problematic film and crafted it based on his unique vision and created a masterpiece out of it. There are also plenty of gorgeous and epic landscape shots and long shots here. With huge dinosaurs as characters in this film, it makes for some fantastic cinematography, especially when seeing these huge dinosaurs looking so small compared to the scale of this massive world. It's just breathtaking to look at.
The voice acting, as per usual with Pixar, is also amazing and features many voice actors who knock it out of the park. There are a few well known actors here, but many of them are more unknown actors. Some noteworthy roles are Raymond Ochoa, an actor I have never heard of who plays Arlo and has a voice that perfectly fits the role. For example, when Arlo is scared, you can hear it in his voice and it feels very genuine. Also, Sam Elliot plays Butch, one of 3 in a family of T-Rexes that help Arlo on his journey. He gives a rather menacing performance. But Butch is not at all evil, he's just very intense. The other T-Rexes, Nash and Ramsey are voiced by A.J. Buckley and Anna Paquin respectively and they both give great performances as well. Whenever there is dialogue and voices in the film, the voice acting is very well done and the screenplay is very well written.
The score for the film is yet another shining aspect of the film. Composed by Mychael Danna and Jeff Danna, this is certainly very different from Pixar's usual Randy Newman and Michael Giacchino scores. as much as I love those composers, it's so nice to have a change from Pixar's usual composers every now and then. I'm actually listening to the films remarkable score right now as I'm writing this review! It has quickly become one of my favorite Pixar scores. During the scenes with no dialogue, the score really takes over and it's just beautiful and really effective! Whether it's an epic scene, a surreal and psychedelic scene, a quiet and calming scene or a scene highlighting its western setting, the score establishes the tone of the film with perfection.
The Good Dinosaur is a phenominal film, but I'm worried will be very underrated. It's a film that many, much like myself, will definitely love. And to us, it will be a truly beloved gem and remain very close to our hearts. But others might find it off-putting with a story that some will view as "simplistic," its minimal use of dialogue, its 30's and 40's animation feel and its weird and psychedelic nature. I, however, found The Good Dinosaur to be heartfelt, fun, epic, ambitious and the perfect amount of strange. Its use of visual storytelling and its classic animation feel are some of the many phenomenal aspects of the film. It's yet another Pixar masterpiece and it does exactly what the studio does best. Don't listen to the naysayers and go watch this movie as soon as possible and appreciate what makes this film so brilliant.
Film Grade: A+
Sanjay's Super Team, which is the short film being shown before The Good Dinosaur, is an amazing story that deals with religious themes. It's about a Hindu child named Sanjay who, instead of wanting to pray with his father, imagines Hindu gods coming to life as superheroes. It's very action packed, yet also very touching, heartwarming and beautiful, and this being a personal and true story to director Sanjay Petel makes is all the more effective. The animation is also gorgeous, colorful and surreal. Its art style, mainly during the imagined superhero scene, is very similar to the over-the-top nature of comic books and anime shows. It's breathtaking to watch and is also backed by a fantastic score which is also composed by Mychael and Jeff Danna. This is a fantastic short film overall and I'm sure everyone who watches it before The Good Dinsoaur will love it!
Short Film Grade: A+
Wow-what an innovative concept for a movie! Also, I really enjoyed your review; it is extensive and showcases both your knowledge of and passion for animated films. I am excited to see it now even though animated films are not usually my favourite genre-kudos!
ReplyDeleteL. Fahidi