SPOILER-FREE MOVIE REVIEW
The thirteen-year wait is finally over.
The long-awaited sequel to my generation's favourite childhood movie (or one of, at least) is here and boy are we filled to the brim with nostalgia.
This sequels follows up one year after the events of Finding Nemo, with the focus obviously being on the character of Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) - a character who wasn't that major in the first film.
They play on Dory's condition of having short-term memory loss - making it the catalyst for everything that happens over the course of the movie.
Nostalgia aside, I actually felt that Finding Dory was a really good film.
Each character was interesting in their own right, especially the new ones such as Hank the Octopus (Ed O'Neill), Destiny (Kaitlin Olson), Bailey (Ty Burrell) and Dory's parents, Jenny (Diane Keaton) and Charlie (Eugene Levy).
Each of them brought plenty of warmth to the film, and Hank was, in my opinion, the most interesting character of the whole movie (sorry, Dory).
He had the best lines, the best character motivations, and at the end of the day, he worked towards his ultimate goal which was to get transferred to another aquarium.
Without diving to deep into his character in order to avoid any spoilers, Hank faces a dilemma whether to stay or to go. It's a very interesting dynamic which adds plenty of depth (yet another water joke haha) to his character.
The returning cast are good too, and to hear their familiar voices again was really nice.
Having said that, however, I felt that some characters were slightly overlooked. I mean, yes, I know that this movie isn't focused on Nemo anymore, but Nemo should have featured more.
Also, it's not so much a case of a swap in roles between Nemo and Dory because Nemo is far less significant in this movie than Dory was in the first movie.
Anyway, going back to the aquarium, this film is set at a permanent aquarium in California - compare this to the setting of Finding Nemo, which was like THE ENTIRE OCEAN.
Hence, in terms of scale, Finding Dory is smaller - which is not necessarily a bad thing, if I'm honest.
A smaller scale means less time wasted on travelling montages from place to place, and a more focused story since everything happens in pretty much the same area/place.
Speaking of story, I actually thought that Finding Dory had a fresh story despite the overly-long wait for a sequel.
I actually didn't expect much as I felt that Disney/Pixar simply waited far too long and in the process, the appeal of a sequel kind of died.
To my surprise, Finding Dory was thoroughly intriguing, with enough substance to stand on its own and not rely on the nostalgia factor alone.
It made me laugh a lot, it had warmth, it had heart, and it gave me the feels at times. It was a lovely story.
It was also touching since the story focuses on Dory - a character who struggles with short-term memory loss and hence only has scattered memories of her upbringing and of her family.
It's a very heartfelt struggle that Dory goes through, and it makes you truly feel not just for Dory, but for anyone with disabilities as well. Excellent representation there.
Another fear I had was that Dory's short-term memory loss would end up becoming an annoying character trait should it be overused as a plot device.
Mercifully, that wasn't the case in Finding Dory. In fact, her short-term memory is even used to excellent comedic effect at times.
Is there anything I didn't like about the movie? Well, there's only one thing really.
I really didn't like the constant flashbacks to Dory's past. Like, okay I get it. You have these fragments of scattered memories but they keep on cutting back to something that happened in Dory's past till it reaches a point where it becomes annoying.
Just a little issue though. Everything else is pretty good.
From the beautiful nostalgic music by Thomas Newman to the stunning updated visuals, Finding Dory was so much more than just a re-imagined version of Finding Nemo.
All in all, Finding Dory was a very nice movie which not only satisfies that unresolved childhood void left due to the 13-year wait for a Finding Nemo sequel, but also appeals as a movie on its own.
This is a good example of how to do long-awaited sequels/prequels well, unlike Monsters' University (2013) which was frankly, quite silly and pointless. Fingers crossed that The Incredibles sequel will be... Incredible.
Kids of 13 years ago (like me) will love this movie, and kids of today will love it too - although I feel they should wait for the older folks like us to watch it first before crowding the theatres with their restlessness and noise.
An almost flawless movie, but not THAT fantastic. Still a good time and a worthwhile watch, nonetheless.
8/10.
The long-awaited sequel to my generation's favourite childhood movie (or one of, at least) is here and boy are we filled to the brim with nostalgia.
This sequels follows up one year after the events of Finding Nemo, with the focus obviously being on the character of Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) - a character who wasn't that major in the first film.
They play on Dory's condition of having short-term memory loss - making it the catalyst for everything that happens over the course of the movie.
Nostalgia aside, I actually felt that Finding Dory was a really good film.
Each character was interesting in their own right, especially the new ones such as Hank the Octopus (Ed O'Neill), Destiny (Kaitlin Olson), Bailey (Ty Burrell) and Dory's parents, Jenny (Diane Keaton) and Charlie (Eugene Levy).
Each of them brought plenty of warmth to the film, and Hank was, in my opinion, the most interesting character of the whole movie (sorry, Dory).
He had the best lines, the best character motivations, and at the end of the day, he worked towards his ultimate goal which was to get transferred to another aquarium.
Without diving to deep into his character in order to avoid any spoilers, Hank faces a dilemma whether to stay or to go. It's a very interesting dynamic which adds plenty of depth (yet another water joke haha) to his character.
The returning cast are good too, and to hear their familiar voices again was really nice.
Having said that, however, I felt that some characters were slightly overlooked. I mean, yes, I know that this movie isn't focused on Nemo anymore, but Nemo should have featured more.
Also, it's not so much a case of a swap in roles between Nemo and Dory because Nemo is far less significant in this movie than Dory was in the first movie.
Anyway, going back to the aquarium, this film is set at a permanent aquarium in California - compare this to the setting of Finding Nemo, which was like THE ENTIRE OCEAN.
Hence, in terms of scale, Finding Dory is smaller - which is not necessarily a bad thing, if I'm honest.
A smaller scale means less time wasted on travelling montages from place to place, and a more focused story since everything happens in pretty much the same area/place.
Speaking of story, I actually thought that Finding Dory had a fresh story despite the overly-long wait for a sequel.
I actually didn't expect much as I felt that Disney/Pixar simply waited far too long and in the process, the appeal of a sequel kind of died.
To my surprise, Finding Dory was thoroughly intriguing, with enough substance to stand on its own and not rely on the nostalgia factor alone.
It made me laugh a lot, it had warmth, it had heart, and it gave me the feels at times. It was a lovely story.
It was also touching since the story focuses on Dory - a character who struggles with short-term memory loss and hence only has scattered memories of her upbringing and of her family.
It's a very heartfelt struggle that Dory goes through, and it makes you truly feel not just for Dory, but for anyone with disabilities as well. Excellent representation there.
Another fear I had was that Dory's short-term memory loss would end up becoming an annoying character trait should it be overused as a plot device.
Mercifully, that wasn't the case in Finding Dory. In fact, her short-term memory is even used to excellent comedic effect at times.
Is there anything I didn't like about the movie? Well, there's only one thing really.
I really didn't like the constant flashbacks to Dory's past. Like, okay I get it. You have these fragments of scattered memories but they keep on cutting back to something that happened in Dory's past till it reaches a point where it becomes annoying.
Just a little issue though. Everything else is pretty good.
From the beautiful nostalgic music by Thomas Newman to the stunning updated visuals, Finding Dory was so much more than just a re-imagined version of Finding Nemo.
All in all, Finding Dory was a very nice movie which not only satisfies that unresolved childhood void left due to the 13-year wait for a Finding Nemo sequel, but also appeals as a movie on its own.
This is a good example of how to do long-awaited sequels/prequels well, unlike Monsters' University (2013) which was frankly, quite silly and pointless. Fingers crossed that The Incredibles sequel will be... Incredible.
Kids of 13 years ago (like me) will love this movie, and kids of today will love it too - although I feel they should wait for the older folks like us to watch it first before crowding the theatres with their restlessness and noise.
An almost flawless movie, but not THAT fantastic. Still a good time and a worthwhile watch, nonetheless.
8/10.
Comments
Post a Comment