Brave - early review

[JasonEvans]

Brave is a good animated film, better than most of what you see in this genre, but pales in comparison to what we generally expect from Pixar. It is not the "miss" that Cars2 was last summer but isn't nearly up to the standards of Toy Story (I, II, or III), Wall*E, Ratatouille, Incredibles, Up, and other Pixar greats.

Brave features wonderful animation (Pixar always hits a homer in that regard) but the story is a bit simplistic and obvious. There is a headstrong princess who clashes with her "by the book" mother/queen. The daughter does not want to follow the path her mother has laid out for her and gets some help from a witch with a spell in that regard. The spell takes effect in ways the daughter could not imagine and she has to figure out a way to fix it before it is too late. Like I said, it is an obvious story. The plot just doesn't feel as honest or intelligent as Pixar usually delivers. What's more, the "journey" of the characters never really happens. None of the characters really feel all the different at the end from where they were at the beginning. The "life lessons" that seem to be a staple of this kind of story never play out all that well. The humor was just so-so and this is almost more of an action story than a funny one, though I think it wanted to be funnier. The characters also feel more cartoonish and less nuanced than we have come to expect from Pixar.



Honestly, I don't feel like there is all that much more to say. I hope it does not seem like I am trashing the film. I am not. Again, it was a good movie and one that adults will be able to enjoy a bit while they take their kids to the movies, but it is not great and I can't imagine adults without kids going to this flick and really enjoying it (the way they can with most of the Pixar cannon).

I think the boxoffice prospects for the film are quite good. I expect it to make something like $60-70 mil in its opening weekend and it has a decent shot at making $200 mil overall. It should appeal more to mothers and daughters than fathers and sons as all the main characters are women. Tangled made $200 mil and I think this is somewhat of a similar film (maybe not quite as good a story, though the animation is higher quality).

-Jason "as an aside Seeking a Friend for the End of the World was a dud -- a depressing movie about depressing characters with a lot less humor than you might imagine" Evans

[Rich]

Jason, if you did a review for Madagascar 3, I must have missed it. My intention is not to hijack this thread, but since we're talking about a kids film... I took my 9 year old son to see Madagascar 3 this past weekend and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. Depending on the film I usually plan a nap when I take my kids to the movies, and I was very tired when I took my son, but the action and humor easily kept my attention. Perhaps not up to the same lavel as some of the classic animation films in your post, but nevertheless a lot of fun. I highly recommend it for kids and their parents.

[moonpie23]

but isn't nearly up to the standards of Toy Story (I, II, or III), Wall*E, Ratatouille, Incredibles, Up, and other Pixar greats.

the bar is set kind of high....i think those movies will always be underrated because they're animated...as will shrek...

[moonpie23]

i'm a bit put off by the trailers... :/ not sure why, maybe i will take my 5 yr old daughter to see it but it seems like it's trying a bit too hard.

disney is battling the backlash of the "princess" icon...as parents, so are we...

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/23/bo...ew/Paul-t.html

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newswee...er-s-soul.html


i'd like to see a really good non-princess heroine.....jason, does this hit the mark?

[moonpie23]

i meant that to say, "as parents so are we" (fighting the princess icons - not the backlash)

[JasonEvans]

i'd like to see a really good non-princess heroine.....jason, does this hit the mark?

Hmmmm, sorta. Merida, the Scottish princess at the center of Brave, is a tomboy and loves to shoot stuff with her bow and arrow. She is strong and independent. In that regard she is not a typical Disney damsel in distress. But, the story is a bit too weak and obvious and that defuses much of the strength and importance of the main character. In that regard, Merida is not the great female heroine you have been longing for.

-Jason "the movie is doing well with audiences and at the boxoffice so far - I think families like it a bit more than I did" Evans

[moonpie23]

dang. another princess. this is gonna make me look bad again. I'm not a king.

[JBDuke]

dang. another princess. this is gonna make me look bad again. I'm not a king.

Too bad. It's good to be the king.

[Jim3k]

Too bad. It's good to be the king.

I understand Mary Englebreit is looking into your possible copyright/trademark violations.

(Boy, her work is everywhere.)

[JBDuke]

I understand Mary Englebreit is looking into your possible copyright/trademark violations.

(Boy, her work is everywhere.)

I think Mel Brooks has the original copyright on this one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuMQj...e_gdata_player