A Simple Magic

Rating: 8/10 (5 August 2012)

The reason why Pixar movies are so special not only because of the filmmaking but also because of their creative high concepts and their heartfelt messages. They have their own kind of magic. Brave has it all but it sometimes feel different. The story is good but the idea is not as mind boggling as their other films. The only thing remains intact here is the heart. Despite from all that, it's still a wonderful film. But some might still be disappointed.
Brave has a little originality to its story. We don't see anything very intriguing but the wisps. The rest is something that we've already seen in other animated movies. But the film obviously points out at the message. Pixar finally returns at bringing genuine emotions after the Cars 2 fiasco last year, but this film doesn't go deeper until the third act. The movie is plodded with too much humor in the intro which it delays to the main plot. It's better when it finally goes to the story.
Some might still complain about being different to the usual Pixar animation. It is different and indeed feels more like a standard Disney animated film than Pixar. The main reason is the lack of high concepts. This is probably the least interesting concept among the others, but again it is more about the heart. The animation just got better. The visuals are undeniably gorgeous and it's enough for making this worth watching. The cast gave plenty of personality to their roles. The score is wonderful and exciting.
Overall, it's a great movie but it's kind of out of place as a Pixar film because it doesn't have any intriguing ideas like toys coming to life, daily life of monsters, a superhero family, a flying house, rats can cook, etc. But the heart is still there and it works effectively. Maybe they wanted to try to be basic and leave the high concepts for a while. For now, we have a heartwarming tale about family. The filmmaking is without a doubt well done. The animation looks great. Pixar never fail at making good movies. Since this is not their best, at least they gave us something sweeter and absolutely beautiful.