Review on The Good Dinosaur

MOVIE: The Good Dinosaur A.K.A. That New Pixar Flick with the Lost Brontosaurus

Honestly, I probably wouldn't have seen this one in the theatre had I not been assigned to it four times in one day. That would have been a shame. I should know by now not to doubt a movie company that has the time to sit and think about a movie's script for the three-four years it takes to animate it.

Pixar knows how to find you by the feels and wring them out in a vice. Feels that make you find yourself grabbing your chest crying at the end of Toy Story 3 and say: "Oh, there you are, heart, I forgot you were there." Damn you, Disney.

The plot is pretty straightforward. Arlo is our main Dinosaur. He experiences tragedy and feels it and you feel it with him. He comes across the boy that is more like a pet dog than anything and he even names him Spot. They bond over their mutual tragedies and try to get home together.  

There were a few times I drew back and I thought to myself: is this really for kids? Like the way that death of a family member was shown... or time the pair accidentally gets high (I note that the kids did love it, though)... or when they come across a creature that cons them into saving a cute critter just so he can eat said critter very shockingly. I was rather appalled by the last one and took more than a few minutes bitching about it to a coworker. That big-eyed raccoon thing was way too cute to die that violently.

The scenery is breathtaking, and I love nature, so I enjoyed that part immensely. At one point, I threw on a pair of 3D glasses to see what other's were seeing, but most of the movie is regular anyway, so it didn't feel like anything to write home about. 

I did enjoy the film every time I saw it, maybe even more each time when I spotted something new. Granted, I've always been a sucker for brontosauruses since The Land Before Time, when I used to draw them with markers for my mother a hundred times a day. 

However, maybe I'm a bit emotionally jarred, but it seemed like there was an overdose of sad parts and tragedy and I'm not one who likes going to the movies to experience tough grieving for a dinosaur. It's a similar feeling I have towards Up, only there it was for humans and I felt less ridiculous. With great power comes great responsibility, Pixar. I say stop it with the morbidity. I also felt a bit of that one hour, forty minute runtime, but maybe I was just tired along with the main characters.

Bottom line: It's definitely worth a see, but expect the gut to be wrenched. Because Pixar. 

B