Two Pixar
films fell below my expectations in 2015: The
Good Dinosaur and Inside Out. The
saving grace of 2015 for Pixar was Sanjay’s
Super Team.
***SPOILERS***
The Good Dinosaur: the title really didn’t
encapsulate what the film was about whatsoever. The only way it related to the
film was that the main character was a dinosaur, but under that logic, ‘The
Good Human’ would be a legitimate name for almost any other production!
A
better name would have been ‘The Storm Provides’. This phrase sums up the film
nicely as it was clearly the film’s catchphrase (though thankfully not said to
the point of annoyance) yet as a title it wouldn’t give the plot away
whatsoever.
The
story was acceptable. There was a scene reminiscent of The Lion King when the main story arch kicks off: the main
character (a son) sees his father get killed by an oncoming force of nature
surging past the cliff-face they stand at. It seemed almost lazy to use the
same plot device. Of course, in The Good
Dinosaur, it’s caused by the storm which is the driving force in the film,
so I think that it was still necessary.
I
really like how the t-rex ran like horses, seeing as they were cowboys. That
had me giggling for a good ten minutes. I also enjoyed seeing the farm that the
dinosaurs had built up at the beginning of the film, seeing how it worked and
the challenges it faced. I thought that was particularly clever and well
thought out.
I
didn’t like that the humans howled. I think they did it because dogs howl and
dogs are humans’ best friend, so in this world where the dinosaurs are the most
intelligent species and the dinosaur’s best friend is a human, perhaps it was
to draw the comparison. But it was sloppily done.
Yet
there were many things that could be improved. One little girl half way through
the film declared, “There! It’s a happy ending. We can go now!”
I
wasn’t the only one bored, apparently.
The
film definitely had potential. There were loads of positive aspects which I
think could have provided the basis for an exceptionally good film.
The short
at the beginning of The Good Dinosaur,
Sanjay’s Super Team, is my favourite
Pixar short of all time. One of my favourite Pixar things all round, actually. (I
place it third, behind Finding Nemo
and Finding Dory; I will talk about Finding Dory in a later post.)
The
details in the animation were so intricate and pretty. It was fantastic that
Disney has done its first Hindu animation. One of my favourite aspects was the
father patting the floor at the beginning and the son doing the same at the
end, inviting the other to join them to see what’s important to the other. The
resolution was sweet and simple. A truly lovely short!
I
watched this with a friend in the cinema. They knew it was coming but I had
absolutely no idea. Afterwards, my friend said they looked forward to seeing my
reaction to this short, as they knew it was there but I had no idea. I love all
things Asian and particularly all things Indian so I was rather pleased.
I was very
excited about watching Inside Out. I
found the idea of depicting depression in a child’s film very intriguing and
important. The first segment of the film, where the system of the brain and how
it worked were explained, was fascinating and very enjoyable.
Toddlers
can experience depression so representing it in a friendly medium, by the
personification of the emotions, made the concept accessible. The first step to
acceptance is understanding; if a toddler’s peers can understand depression
even slightly, it makes life so much more bearable.
It
was when the story started that I started to dislike the film. The plot was so
weak and dissatisfying. It really wasn’t to my taste at all. I was expecting a
lot and it just didn’t deliver, which only made me dislike it more. There’s
never been an animation that I’ve actively encouraged people not to watch it.
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